TMForumTheatre

=**Forum Theatre**= ====The word ‘forum’ is an ancient Roman term meaning an open area serving as a public gathering place. This is an apt term describing one of Melbourne’s leading theatres, the appropriately named Forum Theatre, as people gather there and enjoy various shows and concerts.====

//History//
The Forum Theatre, formerly known as the State Theatre, is located on the corner of Flinders street and Russell street. It opened in February of 1929. The cinema had the largest seating capacity in Australia, holding up to 3,371 people. The building was grand to say the least, with a Wurlitzer organ installed featuring 21 rows of pipes and a grand piano attachment and oboe horn.

In 1963 the Forum was converted by cinema chain the Greater Union into two cinemas, the Forum and the Rapallo. In 1978 it was listed on the Historic Buildings Register. In 1981 the Forum was separated by renovations into Forum I and Forum II. Forum I, the larger of the two which can hold up to 2,300 people, is located on the ground floor and generally used for large-scale performances such as concerts. Forum II is a smaller venue with a seating capacity of 540.

The Forum Theatre has been bought and sold numerous times over its lengthy history. In 1985 it was purchased and used by a Christian organisation called the Revival Centres International and during this time fell into a general state of neglect. In 1995 it was bought by Staged Developments Australia who redeveloped it. It was later purchased by David Marriner in an attempt to establish Melbourne as theatre capital of the Southern Hemisphere.

The theatre is listed on the Victorian Heritage Register. It is a popular venue for concerts, having hosted performances by Lily Allen, Katy Perry and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. It is also a venue for the annual Melbourne International Film Festival. In more recent times, it has housed countless acts during the Melbourne International Comedy Festival.

//Architecture//
The Forum Theatre was designed by American architect John Eberson along with a local firm, Bohringer, Taylor & Johnson. Topped by a jewelled copper dome, the Forum is heavily influenced by Arabic architecture, with an ornate Moorish Revival exterior, oriel windows and an elaborate clock tower flanked by minarets. The Flinders st façade was topped by a minaret, exhibiting the Moorish influence on the building.

The interior is just as ostentatious as the exterior, being almost identical to that of the Capitol Theatre in Sydney. It was designed as an atmospheric theatre (a type of movie palace with an auditorium ceiling designed to give the illusion of an open sky), the ceiling being made to look like the Mediterranean twilight sky. It includes twinkling stars, a crescent moon and projected moving clouds.

The Forum is not only influenced by Arabic architecture but also that of Italy, exhibiting both Venetian and Florentine design. A balcony borrowed from Doge’s Palace in Venice, mock palace façades modelled after Venetian palaces, a Florentine garden and a pergola decorated with artificial vines which run the length of the dress circle are each an example of this.

The interior includes reproductions of Greco-Roman statues with lights behind them, giving off an eerie glow. Along with the sculptures and statues and a curved cerulean ceiling add to the American cinema influence. Lavish moulded plaster, gold paint and exotic detail add to the Forum’s intrigue.

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