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Story: Southland region

Civic theatre and town hall

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Exterior of heritage building against blue sky

Invercargill’s combined town hall and civic theatre, designed by E. R. Wilson on classical lines, opened in 1906 with a show that included Handel’s ‘Hallelujah chorus’. The building was called simply the Civic Theatre from 1930; over time the municipal offices had become function rooms. After surviving a threat of demolition in the 1970s, it was fully renovated in 2005 and is now a multifaceted venue used by local and regional organisations, as well as national and international touring companies.

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Invercargill City Council

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How to cite this page

David Grant, Southland region – Society and culture, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/20139/civic-theatre-and-town-hall (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by David Grant, published 2 March 2009, updated 1 May 2015.