Monday, June 14, 2010

Save The Regent Theatre at Brisbane

There has been some hoo haa this past few weeks in Queensland- right in the heart of Brisbane City itself as The Regent Theatre, a multi-cinema palace, situated at 167 Queen Street along Queen Street Mall is scheduled to be demolished and a high-rise office tower built in its place end of this year, if I am not mistaken.

Picture taken from HERE.
Grand, palatial, opulent... the original Regent Theatre in Brisbane.
Stage with Wurlitzer organ shown, circa 1954. Built 1929 - demolished 1978. 2580 seats.

You can read more about the history, the protests, the efforts put in at
the savetheregent.com site run by Brett Debritz and also at ourbrisbane.com.

Why would anybody want to preserve an old building when it's not generating any income or much income, right? They might as well turn it into a money making building! Guess that's the message to the new generation- Discard the old when they are no longer bringing in income but instead milking your hard earn money for medical bills etc.

So, old folks, you better start planning for your impending doom of being thrown out of your house and make sure you save a wagon load of gold for your old age. I was being sarcastic just in case you don't know.

Then again, I thought that this kind of thing only happens in "backward" uncultured countries like Malaysia (not being unpatriotic but stating reality) where historical buildings are demolished to make way for newer, so-called-more-modern, commercialised buildings instead of preserving history and its heritage.

In 2001, The Bukit Bintang Girls School (BBGS) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia was demolished several years after celebrating its centenary (once every 100 years), due to its proximity to office buildings and shopping malls.

Guess what they build in the place of this historical school??!!
Yet another shopping mall- The Pavillion. As if we're lacking in that at all!!

SO, don't let the fate of The Regent be like the BBGS!!
You may say it's just a theatre... a cinema... what's the big deal?
Read the above links and you will know...


Picture taken from HERE.

If you are from Australia or narrowing it closer to home- Queensland, do sign the petition HERE or HERE. You can also join the Facebook group HERE. If you aren't but know of anyone who does, do share this with them so that they can sign the petition. It is imperative to get as many signature as soon as possible!


So, to all of you out there who has a voice,
who believes in a worthy cause,
do your bit and sign the petition to save THE REGENT!

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