CAARP
Cinema and Audience Research Project

Opened as the Victory Theatre in 1921 with a seating capacity of 3000 seats and used by Efftee Pictures F W Thring et al
By 1924 Mr Thring was on the board of Hoyts, and the Victory entered the Hoyts chain until 1971. Major reconstruction was undertaken in 1928 to make the theatre more luxurious in order to compete with the new Palais and Regent Theatres. Seating capacity was reduced to 2550.
-June 26 1929 converted to talking pictures
-October 6 1937 seating was 1650 (stalls), 354 (lounge) and 537 (dress circle).
In 1971 it was purchased by the National Theatre Company and converted from a cinema to a live theatre venue. It was officially reopened on September 7, 1974 and in addition to its live shows, the National continued to show films intermittantly- including being used in both the St Kilda and Melbourne film festival. Current capacity 783.

Film Weekly records the following changes in capacity:
1946/47-1949/50 = 2531
1950/51-1961/62 = 2547
1962/63-1967/68 = 2492
1968/69-196/70 = 2025
1970/71 = 2048

References
Cinema & Theatre Historical Society 1997, Cinema index : Melbourne cinemas, suburban cinemas, Victorian drive-ins. CATHS, Victoria.

Fogarty, P 1994, 'The Victory/National Theatre' CinemaRecord, Cinema and Theatre Historical Society Victoria, no. 4.

Fogarty, P 2003,The Screening of St Kilda: a history of St Kilda's cinemas, St Kilda Historical Society, Balaclava, Vic.

Manzie, K 1953, 'Clean up of theatres,' Film Weekly, July 9, p. 10.