Melbourne Athenaeum facts for kids
The Melbourne Athenaeum
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| Address | 188 Collins Street Melbourne, Victoria Australia |
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| Coordinates | 37°48′54″S 144°58′02″E / 37.81504°S 144.96736°E |
| Designation | Victorian Heritage Register, Register of Historic Buildings |
| Capacity | 880 (theatre one) |
| Current use | Live theatre, comedy, library, readings |
| Construction | |
| Opened | 1839 |
| Rebuilt | 1885-1886 |
| Years active | 185–186 |
| Architect | Smith & Johnson |
The Melbourne Athenaeum is a super old and important building in Melbourne, Australia. It's on Collins Street right in the middle of the city. Started way back in 1839, it's Melbourne's oldest cultural spot.
Today, the Athenaeum building has a main theatre, a smaller studio theatre, a restaurant, and a special subscription library. Over the years, it has also been a place for learning (a mechanics' institute), an art gallery, and even a cinema!
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Athenaeum Building Design
The Athenaeum building looks very grand and old-fashioned. It was designed by architects Smith & Johnson and finished in 1886. It has three floors and a fancy front made of stucco, which looks like stone. You'll see tall, flat columns called pilasters and decorative edges.
At the very top, there's a statue of Minerva. She's the Roman goddess of wisdom, arts, and learning. Her Greek name is Athena, which is where "Athenaeum" comes from! This building is so special that it's listed on the Victorian Heritage Register, meaning it's protected because of its history.
Athenaeum's Long History
How it Started
In 1840, a group called the Melbourne Mechanics Institution bought the land for the Athenaeum. They built a two-story brick building, which was ready in 1842. This first building was called the Hall of Arts.
The first leader of the institution was Captain William Lonsdale. The first books for their library were given by Henry Fyshe Gisborne. At first, it was called the Melbourne Mechanics' Institute, but in 1846, they changed the name to the Melbourne Mechanics' Institution and School of Arts.
The Melbourne City Council even met in the building until 1852. The institution grew, and by 1851, it had almost 500 members! In 1872, it officially became the Melbourne Athenaeum.
A famous writer named Marcus Clarke was in charge of the library committee in 1877. The library was a very popular spot, with thousands of visits each year. The building's fancy new front, with the Minerva statue, was finished in 1886.
Theatre and Movies
The Athenaeum Hall showed its first movie in October 1896. It became a regular place to watch films. Guess what? The world's first feature film, The Story of the Kelly Gang, was shown here in 1906!
In 1924, the theatre was made into what it looks like today, with 880 seats. It was renamed the Athenaeum Theatre. It was one of the first places in Australia to show "talking pictures" (movies with sound), like The Jazz Singer in 1929. For many years, until the 1970s, it was mainly a cinema.
Today, the Athenaeum Theatre is a busy place for live shows, comedy, and music. It's a main spot for the Melbourne International Comedy Festival. There's also a smaller theatre upstairs, which used to be an art gallery.
Art Gallery History
The Athenaeum also had a famous art gallery. It opened in 1904, and one of the first paintings shown there was The Pioneer by Frederick McCubbin.
Many famous Australian artists showed their work here, like Clarice Beckett, Rupert Bunny, Hans Heysen, Albert Namatjira, Tom Roberts, and Arthur Streeton. The gallery was very popular, and artists often had to book a year in advance to show their art! It closed as a gallery in 1971.
The Library Today
The Athenaeum's special library, where members pay a fee to borrow books, was very popular in the 1950s. At one point, it had over 7,500 members! Even though membership went down for a while, it's now growing again.
Today, the library has a huge collection of 30,000 books. It also hosts regular events, talks, and book clubs for its members.
Today at the Athenaeum
The Athenaeum Theatre is still a very active place. It hosts many theatre, comedy, and music shows, including big events like the Melbourne International Comedy Festival. The Wheeler Centre for Books, Writing and Ideas also holds interesting discussions and talks here.
The subscription library is a thriving community with a large collection of books. It regularly holds events, talks, and book clubs, making it a lively place for readers of all ages.
See also
- List of theatres in the Melbourne City Centre
- List of heritage listed buildings in Melbourne
Images for kids
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The Melbourne Athenaeum building
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The original Athenaeum building before 1873
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People enjoying an art exhibition at the Athenaeum Gallery
