Demolition of back of Timaru’s Theatre Royal turns up historical treasures

Monday, 11 August 2025

Demolition of the back-of-house of The Theatre Royal Royal has revealed names from a bygone era.

As the back-of-house comes down on Timaru’s Theatre Royal, pulling down bricks, timber and glass, treasures from the past have also been revealed.

On Thursday, five-and-a-half years after the theatre was closed for safety reasons, contractors started demolition of its back-of-house, which contained the changing rooms, knocking through bricks, roofing iron, wood and glass.

The work continued on Friday, and Chris Buchanan, of Paul Smith Earthmoving, said while contractors had been working on the site, they had been asked to keep an eye out for anything of historical significance.

Chris Buchanan, of Paul Smith Earthmoving, checks out timber salvaged from the demolition of the Theatre Royal back-of-house, with names of actors and shows and dates.

“We have found a few things,’’ he said.

But of most significance were boards that had been written on featuring names, drawings and show names from over the years.

It was thought the writing was featured on the internal walls of the back-of-house but the workers were unsure if it had been boarded over and therefore not seen for a number of years.

“There’s so many different names on there.

“There’s dates dating back to 1935 and the 1940s, just everything from performers who have been in the Theatre Royal over the years.

“It’s a good bit of history and hopefully we can keep hold of it.’’

The oldest drawing he could see was dated 1935.

Internal walls from the Theatre Royal back-of-house feature written notes from former production cast.

While he was unsure what would happen to the items, he hoped they could be preserved.

“The [Timaru District] council have asked us to keep an eye out for anything, so they’ll probably take ownership of it.’’

A drawing in the wood salvaged from the Theatre Royal back-of-house this week.

He said it had been interesting to find items, and he had a special interest in historical things.

Buchanan said it was an exciting project to be part of and there had been some interest from members of the public as the back of the theatre was demolished on Thursday and Friday.

On Monday, the last of the demolition would take place, with the ground level to go, and a tidy up and removal of waste, he said.

The demolition has uncovered several pieces of wall with lots of names dating back to the 1930s.

The theatre had been closed since 2019, and at the time of announcing the closure, the council said it was in advance of a multimillion-dollar upgrade as parts of the venue were not up to standard.

Writing dated to 1957 on the back-of-house material.

In July 2024, the council voted to dump a $57.1m plan to redevelop it and create a new heritage facility.

A design for the new project came about after a public meeting was held to discuss the future of the building.

As part of the project, the Theatre Royal would be redeveloped and a new museum built behind it, off Barnard St. A new laneway would also be created between the theatre and the neighbouring former Excelsior Hotel, at 132 Stafford St.

The back of the hotel and the back of the adjacent Royal Gardens Chinese restaurant building would also be demolished, with the facades to be retained as part of the development.

Managed asbestos removal was also being undertaken at the back of the Excelsior.

Work began on the site late last month and was expected to be completed by the first week of September.