Auckland’s Mercury Theatre surrenders its secrets during $24 million makeover

But for two decades, he was a fixture at the Mercury, appearing in 120 shows before Auckland’s first professional theatre company was abruptly shut down mid-production in the early 90s and the liquidators moved in.

One of the plays being performed at the time was a piece by New Zealand playwright Robert Lord called Glorious Ruins.

Bought by the Equippers Church two years later, the building has been off-limits to the public since 2022, when it closed for a $24 million restoration project, including mandated earthquake strengthening.

However, when Weatherley died 18 months ago, at the age of 85, special permission was given to inter his ashes there.

The family held a small ceremony at the site led by Matt Gregory, who has headed the restoration project since it began in 2017. An ordained pastor, he’s also the church’s general manager.

When Gregory gave the Herald on Sunday a behind-the-scenes tour of the theatre this week, a tangle of terminated electrical cables still lined the service tunnel.

Actors would use the dirt passageway to dash from one side of the stage to the other or emerge unexpectedly somewhere in the auditorium, he says. “All sorts of shenanigans went on.”

Midway through the tunnel, Gregory stops to shine the light from his mobile phone into the shadows, picking out a white satin flower tied with ribbon. A folder compiled by Weatherley’s family has also been placed with his ashes.

“It’s like a time capsule,” he says. “If someone pops their head down here in another 50 or 100 years and goes, ‘What’s that?’, it has his whole life story.”

Heritage buildings are time capsules in their own right, of course. Built in 1910, the Mercury is Auckland’s oldest-surviving theatre. Designated as a Category 2 Historic Place by Heritage New Zealand, it’s also protected under Auckland Council’s unitary plan.

Decades of history have been peeled back during the restoration work, revealing brick walls and decorative pressed-metal surfaces that were plastered over and then gradually buried under layer after layer of paint.

Built in the Edwardian baroque style, the King’s Theatre (as it was then called) screened black-and-white silent movies when it first opened off Karangahape Rd.

It was later renamed the Prince Edward Theatre and then The Playhouse before becoming the Mercury Theatre in 1968. The company’s opening production was The Admirable Crichton by J.M. Barrie, who wrote Peter Pan.

Two years later, Queen Elizabeth II sat in the balcony with Prince Philip for a performance of Jenny McLeod’s “music-theatre extravaganza”, Earth and Sky, based on Māori creation poetry.

The Queen wore an evening dress in cyclamen pink chiffon, embroidered with diamonds and turquoise, according to a newspaper report at the time.

Like any old theatre with a lively past, the Mercury is said to be haunted. Stories of ghostly apparitions include a boy who died there and a woman who apparently materialised in the dress circle.

Gregory isn’t having any of it. “We get told that,” he says, “but I’ve worked in the theatre for a long time, and I can tell you we’re ghost-free.”

The building is owned by a charitable arm of the church, the Equippers Property Trust, which is funding the restoration work through public donations.

So far, $4m has been spent on strengthening the theatre – now removed from the earthquake-prone buildings register – and deconstructing previous renovations, a process that has included the removal of a significant amount of asbestos.

Last year, the project suffered a major setback when a crack appeared down the length of the facade during tunnelling for the City Rail Link. The Karanga-a-Hape train station has been built right next door and runs deep below the theatre.

A negotiated settlement is covering the cost of repairs, but work had to be put on hold for six months until it was confirmed that the building had stopped moving.

Another $20m will be needed to fund the rest of the makeover, so there’s still a long way to go. The theatre is currently set to reopen at the end of next year, giving it a jump on the long-awaited St James’ refurbishment, which is scheduled for completion in 2028.

Gregory admits there’s a degree of magical thinking in that. “The date keeps nudging,” he says. “We tell people it moves at the speed of cash.”

While the building is still very much a construction site, much of the groundwork has now been done. A sloped floor with removable seating is replacing the tiered stalls, and the fly tower has been strengthened.

The Gods, a small upper performance space added in the 60s, will be ripped out to restore an extended balcony overlooking the main stage, retaining the original timber panels found still in place.

Old dressing rooms and recording studios have been stripped from the basement, where a 1910 aqueduct drainage system was discovered beneath the floor. Windows bricked over on the upper floors are being reinstated to let in natural light.

“Each owner, and it’s had numerous owners over its history, has done various modifications,” Gregory says. “In the 1960s, a massive number of changes were made to the theatre.

“Unfortunately, parts that aren’t in great condition will have to be cut out and replaced. Some of the pressed metal has been really badly hacked away. But we’re trying to roll it all back to get as close as we can to 1910, within the current building code.”

One addition being retained is the Dome Room, which has a glorious stained-glass ceiling and a mosaic tiled floor. Added a decade after the theatre opened, the space will be available to hire for private functions and used as a bar.

Gregory says restoring the dome alone is expected to cost around $250,000. “It’s a pretty iconic piece and quite stunning when it’s a bright, sunny day. The whole room lights up.”

An interior colour scheme for the theatre has been chosen, pending heritage sign-off, and the building’s facade on Mercury Lane has had a fresh coat of paint.

A new stage, new electricals, a new fire system, a flank of additional bathrooms and upper-level dressing rooms are yet to come.

When complete, the Mercury will accommodate around 800 people, with capacity expanding to 1000 when seating is removed to allow standing room on the floor. From Monday to Saturday, the theatre will be available as a venue for hire, with Sundays reserved for use by the church.

In previous years, it’s been used for everything from live music shows to large weddings. During the Covid pandemic, a set was built on stage to film two series of the TV show Give Us a Clue.

“You can see we’ve made a lot of progress, but you can also look around and get a bit overwhelmed,” Gregory says. “Once the last lot of demolition work happens, everything we do will be moving forward from then.”

A natural enthusiast, Gregory did some amateur acting himself back in the day and has co-written several scripts, including a stage musical adaptation of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe performed under licence from the C.S. Lewis Foundation.

He can’t wait for the new train station to open right next door. It’ll be just like taking the Underground to see a show on London’s West End.

“I love the magic of musicals. I love being swept up in the story, and I’m excited that this theatre will outlive me and keep telling more stories into the future.”

Joanna Wane is a senior lifestyle writer with an interest in social issues and the arts.