The Lyric Theatre

The Lyric Theatre is a popular name for theatres, especially those staging musical works. There have been a number in South Africa.

The Lyric Theatre, Durban

The venue

A 500-seater theatre in Durban, opened 19/12/1959 through the conversion of the Planet Cinema in Umbilo Road. Used as the home of the Lyric Rep.

In 1961 Desmond Morley was appointed Administrative Director; he presented numerous productions, including such major musicals as The King and I (1951), The Sound of Music (1959) and The Wizard of Oz (1963). Renamed the New Lyric Theatre in July 1974, the theatre promoted a number of indigenous works, i.a. Gibson Kente’s How Long? (1973) and Ipi -Tombi (1974) by Bertha Egnos. Des and Dawn Lindberg staged their production of the musical The Black Mikado here in 1976, which ran for a month.

Thereafter owned by Durban Christian Centre[1] for a number of years (1981-1986), it appears to have been demolished in 1987 (??*)

Sources

Percy Tucker, 1997

[McM]

The Lyric Theatre, Johannesburg

Also referred to as The Lyric in some sources.

The venue

A theatre venue in Gold Reef City[2], Gauteng.

Opened in October 2007 as a luxuriously styled 1100-seat theatre, reminiscent of the opulence of the world's great opera houses with its plush fittings and rich atmosphere. The Lyric presents Broadway and West End productions, local and international musicians, ballet, comedy and so on.

Sources

http://www.goldreefcity.co.za/

https://www.goldreefcity.co.za/entertainment/theatre/the-lyric-theatre/

Percy Tucker 1997. Just the Ticket. My 50 Years in Show Business. Johannesburg: Witwatersrand University Press.

[McM]

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