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Former Hoyts De Luxe Cinema

Other Names Esquire Theatre ,  Target Building Location 236 Bourke Street,, MELBOURNE VIC 3000 - Property No B6696 File Number B6696 Level Regional

[1/1] B6696 Fmr De Luxe Cinema

Statement of Significance

The facade of the Hoyts de Luxe Cinema, constructed in 1915 to the designs of notable architect William Pitt, is of Regional cultural significance as an outstanding example of the numerous pre-World War 11 theatres and cinemas that were concentrated in lower Bourke Street in the 19th and early 20th centuries, making that area the thriving entertainment heart of the city. This facade is also important as part of the earliest surviving purpose-built cinema buildings in the central business district.
It is also imporant as the sole survivor in Victoria of the large-arched design that was typical of the early Modern Baroque phase of cinema facade design, and as the first and, until construction of the Regent in 1929, grandest Hoyts Cinema.
Classified: 05/06/1995