Sometimes, the special historical places in our community that remind us of who we are only speak to us after they’re gone.
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Muswellbrook’s Piazza Cinema, at 17 Bridge Street, is that kind of a building.
Its shell is all that remains after the ravages of time, termites, asbestos and the advent of the video and DVD encouraged us to stay at home and neglect our local cinema.
I was included in that group, so I must shoulder some of the blame.
Barely out of Kindergarten, I squeezed into the Piazza with so many others to watch Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. I thought the flying car up there on that huge screen was the best thing I’d ever seen and Dick Van Dyke was the funniest bloke in the world.
Years later, as a teenager, I stood in a queue that spilled out of those beautiful Art Deco doorways all the way down Bridge Street to get a ticket to that movie about a galaxy far, far away. I remember people sitting near me in the dark gasping as those scrolling credits opened a film that has managed to traverse generations.
They’re my memories of a proud Piazza. What are yours?
A week ago I walked past the cordoned-off construction site that was once the cinema where I admit I did roll a Jaffa down the aisle once or twice and photographed things I found hard to look at.
These recent pictures are the words I can't, and don’t need to, write.
Thankfully, two men committed to this community’s heritage, Lionel Ahearn and Garry Meisner, walked into the offices of The Chronicle this week and shared with us some rare photos of the Piazza in its hey day.
They chip away with fellow volunteers at the Muswellbrook Shire Local and Family History Society Inc. ferreting out the photos that remind us of a time long gone.
I was so grateful to see those images, not because they made me feel better about the current parlous state of the Piazza, but because I was sure the stewards of this community’s heritage are gathering the memories of a once Very Important Place, and documenting them for younger generations to see in years to come.
So, come on Muswellbrook, tell us what you remember about your glamorous Piazza, and roll a Jaffa down the aisle for posterity.
The Muswellbrook Chronicle is keen to re-tell these stories. Call 02 6543 3011 to arrange a time to speak with a journalist to ensure these stories are recorded.
