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a megaplex world. In reciprocation, Westgarth afforded Valhalla proudly upheld its tradition to the end. Its final
Valhalla a vast, atmospheric auditorium, not an insurmount- weekend included The Blues Brothers, A Clockwork Orange,
able distance from Valhalla’s traditional home base. The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Buster Keaton and more. Its
Accessible public transport facilities — tram, train and bus — final evening, Monday 10 June 1996, included comedy, mock-
accompanied the theatre and the neighbouring environment awards, nostalgia and what John Rouse described as “some
appeared to be one into which Valhalla could truly awful Gene Autry clips.” In a sad twist
easily assimilate. Valhalla’s reported $250 of irony, Valhalla closed its Westgarth tenure
000 restoration of the Westgarth Theatre sup- 20 years to the date of its opening in
port the perception that Valhalla viewed its Richmond on 10 June 1976.
tenancy at Westgarth as something beyond Ultimately the outcome was a dire one.
transitory. Professional and amateur workers, Westgarth had lost its idiosyncratic identity
supervised by a production manager, Mr and, in Peter Yiannoudes’ own estimation, a
Peter Culpan, participated in a project which wonderful tenant. Valhalla had lost its second
repaired broken glass, cleaned painted glass, home in less than a decade and its Melbourne
replaced seating in the stalls and introduced presence, perhaps forever. Melbourne had lost
Valhalla’s own projection and sound equip- a truly flavoursome beacon of entertainment.
ment and signage. Even rival operators John Freeman of Carlton
Valhalla’s programming style was appre- Movie House, Natalie Miller of Cinema Nova
ciated not only by its devotees, but by at least and Benjamin Zeccola of Palace Cinemas
one nearby business proprietor. Mr Robert lamented Valhalla’s passing. There were no
Price of Alphabet City Cafe acknowledged winners.
that the magnetism of Valhalla had prevented Yet, redoubtable as ever, Peter Yiannoudes
the collapse of his business in its first year. looked once more to the future with a sense of
Amidst a background of such manifest underlying optimism. Upon the departure of
optimism, press reports concerning the 1996 Valhalla he promptly reiterated his belief in
announcement of Valhalla’s departure from the Westgarth Theatre as a going concern. The
Westgarth convey genuine lament and some product is the essential ingredient according
surprise. Somehow, journalists repined, Ceiling leadlight in entrance to Yiannoudes. He senses that audiences will
Westgarth had never quite recaptured the foyer. Photo: Adrian Maiolla. tire of the entombment of megaplex cinemas
magic of Richmond. This view was also and that large, ornate picture palaces retain an
attributed by the Age newspaper to Valhalla general manager, alluring atmosphere to a significant body of patrons.
Mr John Rouse. The Valhalla chapter closed. Had Westgarth lost its last rai-
Michael Protopapa recalls that Valhalla had made its inten- son d’etre or was this merely the end of another evolutionary
tion not to renew the Westgarth lease known well in advance phase in a long, dynamic existence?
of the 1996 expiry date. This may be interpreted as an admis-
sion that the Westgarth, in its then present state, could not Looking Ahead
work from Valhalla’s perspective. Yet it is clear that Valhalla Since the June 1996 departure of Valhalla, the Westgarth
had not abandoned all hope of its future at Westgarth. The Age Theatre has reverted back to the direct management of the
newspaper reported that Valhalla had expressed interest in Yiannoudes family. Specifically, a son and a nephew of Peter
acquiring the Westgarth Theatre and installing additional Yiannoudes now co-manage the theatre. Programming has
screens. According to John Rouse, “the era of the single- retained some of the spirit of Valhalla, but with a growing
screen cinema is just about over.” Whether the intention to predilection for new release product. The balance appears
install more screens portrays an unwavering belief in appropriate. Recent popular new features including:
Westgarth or merely reluctance on Valhalla’s part to ‘burn’ the Shakespeare in Love, The Sixth Sense, American Beauty and
time and money invested in the Westgarth during the previous Being John Malkovich, have provided the Westgarth with fresh
8 years is difficult to gauge. impetus. In contrast, the more off-beat 1999 Horror Festival
In any case, Peter Yiannoudes’ position was clear. The saw the stalls almost completely full during the evening.
Westgarth Theatre was not for sale. Any ambitions Valhalla Despite these successes, experience reminds us that single-
may have had regarding the acquisition of the Westgarth were screen cinemas are a highly endangered species. A pessimistic
therefore thwarted. The Westgarth was not sold. view is that there is only room for one large, nostalgic suburban
picture palace in Melbourne
and the more supernally
adorned Astor Theatre is it.
Some would further contend
that Valhalla was Westgarth’s
passport to niche renown.
However, a more positive
appraisal would acknowledge
that recent crowd-pullers have
begun a process of rejuvena-
tion of the Westgarth Theatre’s
profile. This is what it so dear-
ly needs. After all, the

18 Autumn 2001 CINEMARECORD