The fantasy of The Civic re-created

Memories will flood back when The Civic Theatre reopens early next year. Many of the theatre's past patrons will vividly remember the piercing, illuminated eyes of the panthers and starry sky ceiling.

The panthers have been painted, spruced up and will be placed in a prominent position in the theatre. The ceiling plaster is being replaced with acoustic material to improve sound quality and fire safety requirements.

Theatrical lighting housed in special hatches and a smoke extraction system concealed in the ceiling will provide an uninterrupted night-sky effect. To recreate the 'starry sky' a multitude of fibre optic cables are linked to rheostats, enabling the stars to be phased in and out and control the degree of twinkle.

The ceiling in the foyer, pictured here, is also being carefully restored with the paintwork being cleaned and repainted above the foyer chandelier which has been wrapped in polythene for protection.

The fibrous plaster relief elephants on the mezzanine foyer level are being repainted - the original detail was obscured when overpainted during previous refurbishments.

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Gordon Campbell: On the Sony cyber attack

Given the layers of meta-irony involved, the saga of the Sony cyber attack seemed at the outset more like a snarky European art film than a popcorn entry at the multiplex.

Yet now with (a) President Barack Obama weighing in on the side of artistic freedom and calling for the US to make a ‘proportionate response’quickly followed by (b) North Korea’s entire Internet service going down, and with both these events being followed by (c) Sony deciding to backtrack and release The Interview film that had made it a target for the dastardly North Koreans in the first place, then ay caramba…the whole world will now be watching how this affair pans out. More>>