Side Wall

The auditorium of Marina Picture Palace at 409 Gardeners Road, Rosebery still carries the bones of what it was: deep red ceiling, panelled walls in red and white, a stage apron now covered by a dark canvas. Two bare bulbs hang from the ceiling. A green pipe lies across the floor in front of the stage. A small ladder leans against the far right wall. Dust and scattered debris have settled across everything. The building opened on 28 May 1927, designed by architect William de Putron, who was also a consortium member alongside builder William Henry Rumble and cinema entrepreneur Eric Christensen. De Putron had left his long-standing architectural partnership the year before due to ill health; the Marina was his independent design. Christensen, who held Exhibitor's Licence No. 1 for New South Wales, placed a gold sovereign in the brickwork during construction. The cinema passed through several operators over its life. The Ward brothers took ownership in 1935. Mascot Theatres Pty Ltd, part of Snider and Dean's suburban circuit, acquired the freehold in January 1939 and installed new seating and projection equipment. In 1967, Chris Louis of Louis Film Company purchased the Marina in honour of his wife, whose name was also Marina. The Louis family ran it as a Greek-language cinema through the pre-SBS era. The cinema closed on 8 February 1984. The family then converted the stalls into a video and DVD shop, which operated until around 2002. The Marina Picture Palace is the only surviving pre-World War Two theatre in the former Botany Bay district. Five others served the area at various points; all are gone. The building has stood vacant since the video shop closed. This photograph, made in 2019, records the auditorium as it remains: still standing, still legible, still waiting.