The Maj

His Majesty’s Theatre, the Maj, is over a hundred years old and is still in constant use as the prestige venue, in Perth, for professional stage shows, ballet and opera.

My sole appearance on stage was as a part of a school choir’s competition way back in the mid-1950′s. I had been told I was a “crow” and I was to move my mouth but to sing silently.

I once worked its back stage as a stage hand, on a panto. Cinderella. There were eight wonderfully white and groomed Samoyed dogs pulling the  sleigh/carriage. Good grief, that would have been in the late 60′s!

Front row seats for Roy Dotrice’s solo performance as Mister Lincoln in the early 80′s.

So many memories.

Built before the days of air conditioning, it had an opening roof and all those doors which lead out onto the balcony were opened on a hot summer’s night to allow a breeze through. That roof has recently been restored to working order.

The building, while a place for the performing arts, is an art work in itself.

One of the tragedies of modern city life is the impossibility of standing back to enjoy a streetscape. The only way to capture most of the facade in a single image is to use a very wide angled lens.