May 10, 2021
On a drizzly day we walked downtown to the Aotea Centre to pick up some tickets for the upcoming Auckland Writers Festival. The Centre is Auckland’s largest performing arts and events venue. Opened in 1990, it is not a particularly loved building. First, due to poor acoustics, the main auditorium required a refit just five years after it opened. Then in 2012, the whole building underwent refurbishment. As we passed it appeared to be undergoing even more work. The Sydney Opera House it is not!
Across the square from the Aotea Centre is the Auckland Town Hall. Built in 1909, this Italian Renaissance Revival building is another popular entertainment venue and is the home of Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra. Back in the 1930s, Mal’s father, uncle and aunt performed there on a number of occasions in humorous skits written by their mother that were broadcasted live over the radio as part of a popular variety show.
Just down Queen Street from the Town Hall is the Civic Theatre, one of the last remaining ‘atmospheric’ theatres in the Southern Hemisphere. It is now mainly used for live performances, but when it opened in 1929 it was as a movie theatre. We were lucky enough to see a number of movies there back in the eighties. It is, without doubt, the most beautiful movie theatre we have experienced. Sitting in the theatre, we were surrounded by beautiful colorful Moorish turrets, minarets and spires that remained dimly lit during the movie. On either side of the screen lay two massive golden Abyssinian Panthers whose eyes shone bright red when the lights went down. The ceiling was filled with thousands of lights that twinkled like stars. The overall effect was of enjoying the show on a beautiful star filled night in a Moorish garden.
This part of downtown caters more and more to the many Asian students that study at Auckland University just up the hill. There are stores from all over Asia, including this one from Korea.
One classic Kiwi store that has remained is Smith & Caughey’s, New Zealand’s sole-surviving family-owned department store.
Next to the department store is a beautiful arcade.
That leads from Queen Street to the quieter and prettier Elliott Street.
During the walk we passed two classic British automobiles.
Mal and Lauren 