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The Regent Brisbane

The Regent Grand Concert
Orchestra of 30 musicians was under
the baton of Ernest G. Mitchell, who
together with the American organist
Stanley Wallace, had performed at the
opening of the Regent in Melbourne 10
months earlier.
The orchestra played God Save The
King and Manager Edgar Betts came
on stage to introduce Messrs. Thring
and Griffiths. After the exchange of
speeches, the main curtain rose on the
first Fox Movietone News, the first
talking Australian newsreel, which
included a speech by the Prime
Minister, James Scullin. Next came two
shorts, The Man Higher Up and a
Gertrude Lawrence comedy Early
Morning.
The much-publicised WurliTzer
rose from the pit, enveloping the
audience in sinuous velvety tones as the
quick-silver fingers of Stanley C.
Wallace created a selection of melodies
from grand opera. A Three-Act
Prologue was introduced by Master of
Ceremonies Hugh Steyne. This
included the well-known dancer
Freddie Hodges, a vaudeville comedy
sketch and the Regent Ballet and
Orchestra.
After Interval came another
Movietone News, which included the
1929 Melbourne Cup and then the
feature, the Fox Follies of 1929, Fox’s
first all-talkie revue. Finally the organ
rose again and Wallace played to the
departing crowd. The opening had been
a triumph for Hoyts and for sound
technology.
Entertainment on this scale required
a huge staff. The Regent Orchestra, the
backstage assistants, the Regent Ballet -
in itself 20 dancers under the direction
of Miss Meeta Davis - totalled 60
people, a number quickly reduced as
the Depression cut into attendances.
The Ballet was an early casualty,
disbanded in 1932.
Epic Vision. When you have seen the Regent, when you have sat spellbound by the Pageant of Stars - Stars of the Screen, Music and the Stage - you will truly know the new entertainment
that delights London and New York. You will have seen the utmost the combined arts can give; you will acknowledge the Regent's triumph.
These are the new curtains for the introduction of CinemaScope in 1953.

18 2005 CINEMARECORD