Baycourt Community and Arts Centre
General information
TypePerforming arts and theatre venue
Location38 Durham Street, Tauranga, New Zealand
Coordinates37°40′59″S 176°10′03″E / 37.68298°S 176.16746°E / -37.68298; 176.16746
Construction startedOctober 1981
Opened26 April 1983
Design and construction
Architect(s)Warren and Mahoney
Website
www.baycourt.co.nz

Baycourt Community and Arts Centre is a multi-purpose performing arts and theatre facility in Tauranga, New Zealand.[1] It was designed by Warren and Mahoney,[2] and has a main auditorium, the Addison Theatre, that seats 589.[3][4] The Addison Theatre is named after Bob Addison, chairman of a group of local residents who formed the Tauranga Community Arts Council and developed the original proposal for a community and arts centre in 1974. It took nine years of fundraising and planning before the centre was built and officially opened in 1983.[5]

Warren and Mahoney won an award for their design, from the Waikato Bay of Plenty branch of the New Zealand Institute of Architects.[6]

One of the unusual features of Baycourt is its Wurlizter organ. The instrument is a 1926 Mighty Wurli (2/10 Wurlitzer Model H Opus 1482). It was originally installed in a theatre in Wellington, then moved to a shed in Tokoroa, and then into the former Tauranga Town Hall before being installed in Baycourt.[7]

References

  1. ↑ "SunLive - Collecting many memories of Baycourt - The Bay's News First". sunlive.co.nz. Archived from the original on 26 May 2023. Retrieved 26 May 2023.
  2. ↑ Barrie, Andrew; Gatley, Julia (8 July 2021). "Itinerary: Tauranga city guide". architecturenow.co.nz. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
  3. ↑ "Baycourt celebrated". Bay of Plenty Times. 30 July 2015. ProQuest 1699525184.
  4. ↑ "Baycourt facing up to tough future: Flagship city theatre likely to face stiff competition from new venues". Bay of Plenty Times. 5 March 2007. ProQuest 431691459.
  5. ↑ "SunLive - 40 year of Baycourt to be celebrated in April - The Bay's News First". www.sunlive.co.nz. Archived from the original on 30 May 2023. Retrieved 26 May 2023.
  6. ↑ "Central Tauranga Heritage Study". Tauranga City Council and Environment Bay of Plenty. April 2008. Retrieved 16 June 2023 – via Docplayer.net.
  7. ↑ Keber, Ruther (14 May 2015). "Wurlitzer organ's keeper will pull out all the stops". New Zealand Herald. Bay of Plenty Times.

Further reading

  • Guy, Maureen (2015). The Story of Baycourt. Friends of Baycourt. ISBN 978-0-473-32379-0.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.