ONE of Perth’s cultural centres His Majesty’s Theatre is turning 100 this year.
Actually, the centenary ticks over on Christmas Eve but given the changing interests of the populous, the theatre’s management has opted to run a series of events through the year.
The celebrations kicked off on January 19 with His Majesty’s New Clothes, a work aimed at children and written and produced by Barking Gecko.
His Majesty’s Theatre shares it centenary with The Colosseum Theatre which was also opened on December 24,1904.
In another ironic twist, The Colosseum is currently managed by former Perth International Arts Festival chief Sean Doran.
His Majesty’s Theatre general manager Rodney Phillips said a theatre such as His Majesty’s was an expensive operation.
“A 100 year old building of this sort of atmosphere and image needs a lot of maintenance,” he said.
“It’s an ongoing battle to obtain money from the owner the Western Australian Government to get the funds we need.”
There is also the high cost of maintaining the stage, sound and lighting equipment.
Much of His Majesty’s stage infrastructure is about 25 years old and that can pose problems when touring shows ask for the latest equipment.
On the matter of touring shows, Mr Phillips said he had become resigned to the larger shows going to Burswood Resort Casino’s theatre.
“Soon after I got here, four years ago, I was very frustrated when all the big musicals were going across the river to Burswood,” he said.
“But we have 1,200 in seating capacity here. Burswood has 2,000. It’s a matter of economics.
“It’s usually the sale of those last 800 tickets that can be the difference between profit and loss for those big touring shows.
“Most of the things at His Majesty’s we can change, except for the capacity.”
Mr Phillips said big shows aside, there was a whole range of material such as ballet and operatic productions that could come to His Majesty’s.
“I have concentrated my efforts to attract those sort of shows. These are the small to medium-sized productions,” he said.
So, can a venue with the atmosphere of His Majesty’s ever turn a profit?
Mr Phillips said it was virtually impossible to turn a profit.
“If you had a one-hander play with one set running for four to five years you could make a profit,” he said.
“That’s how some of London’s West End theatres make their money.
“The shows we put on have to be subsidised.
“Otherwise tickets to some of the things we put on such as the ballet would cost hundreds of dollars.”
His Majesty’s draws its subsidies from the State Government through the Perth Theatre Trust which also has the responsibility of running the Perth Concert Hall, the Subiaco Theatre Centre and The Playhouse.
His Majesty’s puts on between 15 and 20 shows each year in its main acting space.
Besides those, the theatre has introduced a range of community programs and kept the ticket prices for those low.
These are things such as the lunchtime concert series in the theatre’s foyer.
The theatre has also opened its downstairs area and turned it into a cabaret venue and has created Caberet Soiree. Through that there are about 16 cabarets put on each year.
Mr Phillips said one of the reasons for putting on these other events was to open the theatre up during the day.
“In London or Broadway, all of the theatres are shut up until evening. We wanted to avoid that here.”
His Majesty’s also acts as a meetings venue for corporate groups.