The Regent Theatre opens
The most opulent theatre on Rundle Street was the Regent Theatre, built in 1927–28 by J Reid-Taylor to the design of Cedric, Ballantyne & Associates of Melbourne and English, Soward & Jackson of Adelaide. Described as a ‘palace of art’ when it opened on 29 June 1928, the Regent’s lavish interior featured marble stairs, portraits, tapestries and sculpture. A large Wurlitzer organ played at movie screenings until 1967. In that year the stalls and downstairs foyer were converted into an arcade and the stage space used as part of a second cinema. Remains of the Regent Theatre can still be seen upstairs at the Rundle Mall end of today’s Regent Arcade.
