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ORANA THEATRE, WANGARATTA

By Rod Cook

he Rural City of Wangaratta is located in
Tnorth-east Victoria, some 230 km from
Melbourne. Over the years, it has been home
to a number of cinemas and theatres. The
Orana was built late in the cycle of country
picture theatre construction. It was a somewhat
brave gamble to make the investment to
construct a brand new theatre, given that
television was about to debut in Melbourne and
it was only a matter of time before the district
also received it (eventually in 1964).

The town’s initial film entertainment was
provided by travelling showmen. It was not
until the 1930s that a permanent venue for
movies was established in the form of His
Majesty’s Theatre in Murphy Street. In early
1934, North Eastern Theatres Pty Ltd took over
the theatre and soon acquired the second
picture show in town, St. Patrick’s Theatre,
which had been leased by Wangaratta Amuzu
Pty Ltd. It opened in its new guise with Blossom Time, Mrs. E. Edgar, continued to manage both
starring Richard Tauber. In summer, the two theatres. The Edgar family still operates a
Both theatres operated continuously, although theatres were supplemented by an open air newsagency in Wangaratta.
His Majesty’s was renovated and renamed the theatre behind the Hotel Pinsent, where deck
Plaza shortly after acquisition. This involved chairs were provided for patrons who gained
major work in order to bring this silent movie admission for 1/11 (19 cents), including tax.
house up to date, to fit in with the expectations
of audiences for good sound as well as picture. In 1937, the company purchased land in Reid
Street abutting the Plaza Theatre at the rear.
A 1947 photo of the theatre showed that, apart This was to become the site for the Orana. In
from the entrance itself, little was done to the 1938, a decline in patronage saw the closure
upper façade to disguise its origins. The date of the open air theatre.
of construction was clearly visible above and
behind the large billboards advertising the The manager of both theatres, from 1940 until
current attractions. The foyer was uncluttered his death in 1950, was Arthur Edgar, who
and stairs to the circle were to the patrons’ originally owned a travelling show in
right, only a metre or so from the front doors. partnership with his brother. His widow,
In 1941, the population of Wangaratta had
surged to 6,000 and six extra rows of seats
were added to the Plaza, which also received
a fresh coat of paint.

The Plaza was redecorated in 1950 as
development in the town was reaching a
post-war peak. With this confidence, North
Eastern Theatres embarked on the building of
a completely new theatre (the Orana) and
engaged architects Cowper Murphy and
Associates for its design. (The new Regal at
nearby Benalla would soon follow with a
nearly identical design, but with a smaller
foyer area). Built at a cost of £44,000
($88,000), it was to be a stadium type
auditorium, similar to smaller cinemas such as
the Circle Preston, the Sun Yarraville and
Time Balwyn. However, the plans could not
be implemented until 1956 due to post-war
material shortages.

The company used contractors and suppliers
with connections to the town. For example, the
Builder was Warren & Barr of Wangaratta;
40 tons of steel was fabricated by J.W. Jilbert,
109,300 bricks were provided by the
The stadium style seating of the auditorium Wangaratta Brick Works, plasterwork was by

12 CINEMARECORD # 89