Regent Theatre (Greymouth)
|
2-6 Mackay Street, Greymouth 7805
Contact Person: Patrick McBride, [email protected] Phone: 03 768 0920 Mobile: 027 519 6085 Website:https://www.regentgreymouth.co.nz/ Facebook: www.facebook.com/RegentGreymouth |
|
in Details
Capacity: 26 + 68. 468-seat auditorium for live events.
Screen: Two
Sound: Good, updated system
Seating: armchair airline style (with cup holders) + upright cinema seating
Snackbar: candy bar. Alcohol available in the adjacent Ferrari's Lounge Bar. Toasted sandwiches a speciality
Accessibility: good
Capacity: 26 + 68. 468-seat auditorium for live events.
Screen: Two
Sound: Good, updated system
Seating: armchair airline style (with cup holders) + upright cinema seating
Snackbar: candy bar. Alcohol available in the adjacent Ferrari's Lounge Bar. Toasted sandwiches a speciality
Accessibility: good
. Geoff's Review
You can find a detailed and interesting history of the cinema on their website www.regentgreymouth.co.nz/about. It has a similar lineage to the other Regent on the West Coast (Hokitika), opening in February 1935, with glory days and a steady decline and abandonment in the 1970s. Like the Regent Hokitika, it was rescued by the community in 1975, through the West Coast Theatre Trust. Robert Kerridge, who had an octopus-like grip on film distribution in New Zealand, prevented films being screened there for the following two decades but once the St, James Theatre (a Kerridge cinema) closed in 1987, the Regent was able to once more show films. In 2010, there was a major refurbishment, with two purpose-built cinemas installed. The very large auditorium (468 seats) remains as part of the building but is largely used for live shows and community events.
The Regent Greymouth is run by a community trust (but somehow, inexplicably, has lost its charitable status). As with the NBS Theatre in Westport, it receives financial support from local businesses.There is strong local audience support for the two cinemas, especially from older citizens (friendships are made at daytime screenings), and children/family screenings. Both audience sectors are well-provided with a mix of recent releases. It is particularly popular in the winter months, when the bitter winds blow down the Grey River.
As the photos show, the Regent Greymouth has a very welcoming facade, which reflects an classic style of cinema architecture.
You can find a detailed and interesting history of the cinema on their website www.regentgreymouth.co.nz/about. It has a similar lineage to the other Regent on the West Coast (Hokitika), opening in February 1935, with glory days and a steady decline and abandonment in the 1970s. Like the Regent Hokitika, it was rescued by the community in 1975, through the West Coast Theatre Trust. Robert Kerridge, who had an octopus-like grip on film distribution in New Zealand, prevented films being screened there for the following two decades but once the St, James Theatre (a Kerridge cinema) closed in 1987, the Regent was able to once more show films. In 2010, there was a major refurbishment, with two purpose-built cinemas installed. The very large auditorium (468 seats) remains as part of the building but is largely used for live shows and community events.
The Regent Greymouth is run by a community trust (but somehow, inexplicably, has lost its charitable status). As with the NBS Theatre in Westport, it receives financial support from local businesses.There is strong local audience support for the two cinemas, especially from older citizens (friendships are made at daytime screenings), and children/family screenings. Both audience sectors are well-provided with a mix of recent releases. It is particularly popular in the winter months, when the bitter winds blow down the Grey River.
As the photos show, the Regent Greymouth has a very welcoming facade, which reflects an classic style of cinema architecture.