CIVIC THEATRE.

Auckland Star, Volume LX, Issue 293, 11 December 1929, Page 8

CIVIC THEATRE.

BUSTLE AND NOISE. OPENING DAY APPROACHES. SOMETHING NEW IN ENTERTAINMENT. .Airis bustle and noise at the Civic Theatre, where scores of men are employed putting the finishing touches to New Zealand's greatest theatre. In the rooms set aside for tin purpose, bullet girls are i in active rehearsal, and the musicians solectcd by Mr. Ted Henkel are being finally schooled in all the niceties of ,team Avork. To hear them play.one.camhardly believe that so much harmony could have been produced in so short a time. The big idea behind the Civic Theatre is .to give the public something entirely different to the sterotyped form of entertainment. Music, dancing, presentation, ' stage effects and pictures will all be included in the programme, so that all tastes will be, catered for. Experts have been engaged for every department. They have all been in big shows, and know their business thoroughly.

Looking over the theatre, one can get now a splendid idea of the magnificence of the interior decorations. The grand circle, which seats 1500 people with the utmost comfort, is most attractive, and from'this vantage point the visitor has a splendid view of the atmospheric ceiling and the Moorish villages that are built into the. walls. The foyer is a revelation of the decorative plasterer's art.

The booking plan gives an idea that all Auckland has already made arrangements for their Christmas amusement, for in addition to the opening night being booked up, hundreds of seats have been secured for weeks ahead. Two girls are working furiously at the box office, at the Civic corner, attending to the public demand for accommodation, and it looks as if Mr. Thomas O'Brien is in for a splendid Christmas offering.