St James Theatre

The St James Theatre at 77-87 Courtenay Place is one of Wellington's principal live performance venues. Opened in 1912 as His Majesty's Theatre, it was designed by Henry Eli White for entertainer John Fuller and, per Wellington NZ, was the first entirely steel-framed and reinforced concrete theatre in the world. It showed films in its later decades and closed in 1987, was saved from demolition by a community campaign in the 1990s, and reopened in 1997 as a live venue. It holds Heritage New Zealand Category I status and underwent major restrengthening and refurbishment between 2019 and 2022.

Spaces and capacities

Published figures from Wellington NZ:

• Auditorium: 1,552 theatre-style; 1,543 seated for performances
• First Floor Gallery (600 m2): 350 theatre, 650 cocktail, 250 banquet
• Hospitality Suite (173 m2): 150 theatre, 90 classroom, 100 banquet
• Foyer (270 m2): 500 cocktail, 150 banquet

Access

Facilities include wheelchair spaces with companion seating, an audio loop across all levels, lift access from the ground floor, and audio-described and sign-interpreted performances for some shows.

See also Wellington venues.