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8. THE ORIENT, HEIDELBERG by Fred Page

Long before the building of the Military (Repatriation) Hospital and the Olympic Village, I lived in West Heidelberg
and my nearest theatre, about three kilometres away, was the Heidelberg Orient.

Externally, the theatre featured a few Chinese motifs but the pagoda style verandah which was originally
proposed was either not built or replaced by the mid 1940s by an everyday cantilever verandah over the central
third of the frontage.

The theatre was built in 1933 and was reputed to be the only one of its kind in Australia.

My memories of the auditorium are that it had a picture frame proscenium housing dark blue curtains, each
featuring a rampant dragon which thrilled small children as the dragons faced each other as the curtains closed.
Part way along each side wall was a 'lavatory' sized pagoda housing statues of Budd a. The statues were finished
in a gold colour and lit with dull blue lamps.

I have read elsewhere that the seating was designed to be in stadium style, but my recollections are that the stalls
floor was well raked, following the steep slope of the site, and that the circle only covered the foyer area. Entrance
to the stalls was through a central door on each side of which were the stairs to the dress circle.

Around 1950 the theatre was renovated internally removing virtually all of the oriental atmosphere. The walls
were painted off-white and the lighting intensified. The Buddas and pagodas were 'painted out' but the statues
were lit with red lighting.
Most striking of all was the remodelled proscenium; it had been gently rounded off and scalloped lighting fitted
around the sides and top. The curtains were now mail box red brilliantly lit from the footlights. The overall affect
was of a bright, clean theatre.
Closure came in 1963 when it became a furniture store, but being located in a mainly residential area was
unsuccessful. The building is now a factory/store for the National Bank.