The Liberty Theatre On 6th April 1939 the brand new and improved Liberty opened. Art deco was extremely popular at the time and the theatre was built to impress and be compared with competing theatres at the time. The Sun Theatre in Yarraville went up just a year earlier in 1938. Externally and internally the building was conspicuous. It shined and stood out in fashion. Off Bourke Street, the entrance was made up of plate glass doors that were patterned. This pattern continued on and became a theme throughout the theatre. A.M.Bolot Kino, 1989, architect of the new Liberty, received mixed reviews for his design which included dado walls made up of Australian silver beech and textured plaster which contrasted with other plain surfaces and vertical grills which appeared in other areas of the Liberty. Due to the vertical grills and mirrored ceilings the theatre had a great sense of space and heightened the ceilings. However, the lights were the highlighting feature of the theatre creating a peaceful aura. They were fluorine tubular lights also designed by Bolot, coloured green, orange and cream. The lights ran along the walls, balcony and ceiling. Originally the Liberty’s seating capacity was supposed to accommodate 1100 people. The capacity was reduced to 898 seats as this would provide more spacious comfort for patrons Caarp. Other features included silk drop curtains which were lit by flood lights, heating and cooling air conditioned systems that where located around the theatre as well as beneath the seats and a floor which sloped towards then centre and then up towards the screen The Argus, 1939which prevented patrons from looking up whilst viewing productions. On 1st October 1950 the Liberty Theatre was enveloped by fire and ruined.