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Waterfall Curtains                    Most waterfall examples in
                                                                               Australia were not rouched. In repose
                                                     Australia                 they hung in vertical folds like any
                                                                               curtain. The difference became
                                               Tony Froude’s article Waterfall  apparent as they rose. In waterfall,
                                            Curtains: The New Zealand Experience  equi-spaced ropes attached at the
                                            (CinemaRecord 48), set off enquiries to  hemline are winched upwards,
                                            gauge the extent of their use in   imparting a scallop pattern to the rising
                                            Australia. Readers are invited to write  base. Lower layers meet higher ones in
                                            in with other examples.            horizontal gathers. It is when the
                                               This summary accepts all variants  curtain is lowered that the waterfall
                                            of Waterfall, also known as cascade,  effect is seen. The best examples of this
                                            festoon and contour curtains. In   type of curtain were installed by MGM
                                            Victoria the definition of a waterfall  in some of their city and suburban
                                            curtain was set by the example at the  theatres.
                                            Regent, South Yarra in 1925. This     With lighter fabrics and advances in
                                            magnificent curtain was rouched: at rest  winching mechanisms, waterfall
                                            the pockets of material suggested  curtains are enjoying a revival in some
                                            ripples of water, like the water-wall at  prestige, refurbished cinemas.
                                            the National Gallery of Victoria   Examples in Victoria include the
                                               The curtain and its winding     Rivoli, Camberwell, Palace Cinemas
                                            mechanism were probably imported   Balwyn and the Sun Yarraville. H
          14 percent. STS has moved location  from America. This heavy, rouched
          a bit, but has been at the current  style became traditional in later Regent
          address in the Centreway Arcade   theatres.
          Collins Street for 8 years.
            All the original staff have
          retired, but at STS the memories of
          eccentric clients and their requests
          live on. One lady would never
          accept a number 13 theatre seat or
          anything to do with the figure 13. If
          that number was the price of a
          ticket, she would be told that the
          cost of the seat was 12 shillings and
          six-pence plus six pence ($1.25 plus
          $0.05). Requests these days are   Regent South Yarra: the theatre and the curtain that set the standard.
          more mundane. Most people only
          want tickets for shows.           Waterfall Examples 1920s-1950s
            I have happy memories of the       Qld         NSW             Vic.             SA            WA
          STS service: best available seats,
                                             Brisbane     Sydney        Melbourne         Adelaide       Perth
          and one time using STS to smooth a
                                              Metro       Capitol         Plaza            Metro       Piccadilly
          night out on the town for my                   Century          Regent          Olympia       Regent
          parents. On this occasion, STS                  Liberty                          Regent
          picked up the bill at a city                    Regent
          restaurant for their dinner, arranged           Town            Suburbs
          for tickets to be left at the Tivoli                         Metro Malvern      Suburbs
                                                                       Regent Fitzroy  Odeon Semaphore
          theatre, and organised a late-
                                                          Suburbs     Regent Sth Yarra Picadilly Nth Adelaide
          evening supper at a Collins St. cafe.
                                                      Cinema Granville  Victory St. Kilda  Windsor St. Morris
          Everything went to plan and they
                                                      Hoyts Woollahra
          had a great night out. The account
                                                     Orpheum Cremorne    Regional         Regional
          was of course, sent on to me. H
                                                      Palatial Burwood  Regent Ballarat  Capitol Mt Gambier
          Update:                                     Regal Liverpool
            Soon after this article was              Star Bondi Junction
          written STS moved from the
          Centreway Arcade to St.Kilda Road.             Regional
          Enquiries suggest that it is no             Kinema Narooma
          longer in business.                         Strand Newcastle

                                            Tasmania: No examples of waterfall are known.
                                            Reporting by:
                                            Colin Flint, Ian Hanson, Brian Pearson, Ray Peck, John Thiele and Les Tod.

                                                                                       CINEMARECORD 2005 31
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