Review: Jelani Eddington at the Hollywood Cinema

The Hollywood Cinema with Wurlitzer console (left) piano and chimes. Photo / Supplied

You really haven't lived if you haven't heard the Star Wars theme performed live on a gigantic Wurlitzer organ.

It was a rather bittersweet occasion, but at the weekend US theatre organist Jelani Eddington performed two special farewell concerts at the Hollywood Cinema in Avondale.

One of the last independent cinemas in New Zealand, the Hollywood is soon to be sold and the trust which owns the Wurlitzer organ has been told the organ must be removed by the end of September.

The Wurlitzer originally arrived in New Zealand in 1926 and was first installed at the Regent Theatre on Auckland's Queen St, before being sold to Hutt Valley High School in the 1940s. It moved to the Hollywood Cinema in 1978, which has been its home until now.

Eddington - who also practices law in New York City - first performed at the Hollywood Cinema in 1996 and has since returned every couple of years to play the historic organ.

His August shows were booked before the sale of the cinema had been announced, so a routine show ended up being a final performance.

His congenial personality certainly suited the style of the grand old theatre and his Saturday performance was well-received by the near sold-out audience of organ enthusiastic and Avondale locals.

The concert showed off the range of the instrument and Eddington performed an energetic set of musical theatre classics. There were selections from West Side Story, a Bette Midler medley and of course, John Williams' Star Wars theme.

However, the real highlight of the afternoon was a screening of Laurel and Hardy's silent classic Liberty - complete with accompaniment and special effects courtesy of the Wurlitzer - which had the audience in peals of laughter, a real trip back in time to the silent era of film.

The theatre is due to be sold soon and a potential buyer has indicated they would like full use of the stage - a large portion of which is taken up by the organ and thus must be moved. However, the Wurlitzer Organ Trust of Auckland is in talks with another West Auckland location which may adopt it.

Hopefully, with a little bit of help, the Wurlitzer will sing again.

- nzherald.co.nz