Orange Civic Theatre
From The Orange Wiki
The 1940s saw the formation of two amateur theatrical groups which entertained thousands of people for many years: The Orange Dramatic Society, formed in the mid 1940s and the Orange Choral Society formed in 1949.
The Dramatic Society presented drama and musical comedy in various venues around Orange. In 1950 the society opened its own Little Theatre in a building in Post Office Lane, which was mainly used for rehearsals. Other members also helped form the Central West Drama Group, which had regular meetings of drama enthusiasts from Cowra, Forbes, Parkes and Bathurst as well as an annual festival of one-act plays which continued into the 1970s.
The Orange Choral Society was formed in 1949 and produced many successful musical comedies over the ensuing 26 years. In the early 1970s the Choral Society changed its name to the Musical Theatre Company.
Another theatrical group was formed in 1954, based at the Recreation Hall at Bloomfield Hospital, called Bloomfield Theatrical Society.
The [Orange Civic Centre] which included the Orange Civic Theatre was officially opened by NSW Governor Sir Roden Cutler on Saturday, October 9, 1976. The first director-manager of the Civic Centre and Theatre was John Young who organised an opening festival with 11 different attractions. There was a Night of Stars on opening night, performances by puppeteer Richard Bradshaw, the Benelong Trio, Don Burrows Quintet, school concerts, a documentary film 'Lailai', the Dance Company (NSW), Shakespeare's Hamlet performed by Mitchell College students, soprano Marilyn Richardson, Canadian Mime Theatre and The Sentimental Bloke.The Night of Stars was televised by CBN-8 and featured a number of local and visiting artists.
An addition to the Civic Centre facilities in 1978 was the Billboard Restaurant operating in the forum while the Mona Hessing wall hanging was also unveiled in the forum.
When the new Orange Civic Theatre was opened in 1976 three groups decided to amalgamate in order to most effectively use the modern new facility and the Orange Theatre Company (OTC) was formed, with representatives of the three groups prominent on and off stage as well as in the management of the new company. The move saw the performing arts in Orange reach new heights of professionalism in keeping with the new theatre. Orange Theatre Company has gone from strength to strength, becoming one of the most widely recognised and respected amateur theatre groups in the State. Several of its members have gone on to the professional theatre world and the company has received numerous production awards.
As the City of Orange has earned and maintained the reputation for being a major cultural centre outside of Sydney, it was only fitting that a significant celebration be held on 9 October 2006 to mark the 30th anniversary of the Orange Civic Theatre. For 30 years, the Civic Theatre has been the envy of other regional centres attracting appreciative audiences from far and wide where we have been able to showcase cultural events and bring to country people, productions which would otherwise only be seen at the Sydney Opera House and other major metropolitan areas. These include the Bell Shakespeare Company, the Australian Opera, the Australian Ballet, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and Circus Oz - to name but a few.
Orange Civic Theatre (OCT) is also committed to bring quality professional children’s products to its stage. For the past five years the Theatre has hosted a number of excellent productions from a wide variety of production companies. In 2005 OCT introduced acting and drama classes for students ranging from year 1 to year 10.
- Miller, J., Holmes, D., and Honey, A. (2001) Orange a vision splendid. Orange City Council, Orange NSW.
- Notes for a history of Orange compiled by John Miller (1995-1997). Unpublished.
