Lyttelton Arts Factory

This article is about the venue. For the theatre company based there, see Lyttelton Circus Theatre Company.

Lyttelton Arts Factory
Lyttelton Arts Factory from the north
Interactive map of Lyttelton Arts Factory
Address1 Sumner Road, Lyttelton
Christchurch
New Zealand
Coordinates43°36′10″S 172°43′23″E / 43.60278°S 172.72306°E / -43.60278; 172.72306
Website
laf.co.nz

The Lyttelton Arts Factory (also known as LAF) is a performing arts events venue in Lyttelton, Christchurch, in the South Island of New Zealand. The venue is a black box theatre located on the grounds of the Lyttelton Primary School and is a shared-use facility. It is the school hall during the day but a performing arts theatre and teaching venue outside of school hours.

History

From 2007 to 2011, the Loons Circus Theatre Company in Lyttelton staged over 400 events, ranging from community quiz nights and charity fund-raisers to children's shows and professional theatre.[1][2][3] Their home venue was a historic building known as The Loons. In addition to adult theatre performances, the Loons venue was also used for teaching circus and theatre skills for children aged 5 to 14.[4] The 2010 and 2011 Christchurch earthquakes caused damage to the Loons building and the theatre company was without a home.[5] Planning for repair of the building began, but the theatre company was unable to reach agreement with the building owners over the terms for a new lease.

The Loons Circus Theatre Company then entered into an arrangement with the Lyttelton Primary School and the Ministry of Education to share in the development of a new dual purpose hall and performance theatre on school property on the corner of Oxford Street and Sumner Road.[6][7][8] The theatre company obtained grant funding to help cover the costs of strengthening the new hall to make it suitable for circus work, and for installation of lighting rigs, retractable seating and theatre equipment.[9][10][11] A major grant was also received from the Rata Foundation.[12]

The new venue was opened in 2016 and was named as the Lyttelton Arts Factory.[13] It is a fully-equipped black box theatre that can be adapted for multiple layouts and purposes.[14] A cabaret night was held on 17 June 2016 to mark the theatre company performing in a permanent home for the first time in five years.[15] The company's first season at the Lyttelton Arts Factory in July 2016 was Jim Cartwright's 1986 play Road.[16] It was the company's first major show in five years.[17] An adaptation of Charles Dickens Oliver Twist was staged in December 2016.[18]

Since opening in 2016, the LAF venue has hosted a diverse range of performing arts including choir performances,[19] dance,[20][21][22] solo shows,[23][24] bands,[25] and independent drama productions.[26][27] It has also hosted film festival screenings,[28] and public meetings.[29]

One of those who supported the new theatre facility was artist and former Lyttelton resident Bill Hammond.[30] A reproduction of one of Bill Hammond's best known works, Traffic Cop Bay, named after an area near to the artist's home in Lyttelton,[31] was installed on the Oxford Street frontage of the Lyttelton Arts Factory building in 2024.[32][33] The work was reproduced on 41 vinyl drops, each 8 metres long.[34]

The theatre company based at the LAF was renamed from The Loons Circus Theatre Company to the Lyttelton Circus Theatre Company in 2024.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b "History". Lyttelton Circus Theatre Co. Archived from the original on 13 September 2025. Retrieved 20 August 2025.
  2. ^ "Performance/ theatre". The Press. 15 January 2010. pp. GO.15. ProQuest 314929313.
  3. ^ Knight, Kineta (12 February 2010). "Q&A". The Press. pp. GO.2. ProQuest 315012753.
  4. ^ Nation, Deb (27 June 2010). "The Loons of Lyttelton". RNZ. Archived from the original on 30 November 2020. Retrieved 31 August 2025.
  5. ^ Greenhill, Marc (7 February 2012). "Battle to save Loons' home". Stuff. Archived from the original on 8 February 2012. Retrieved 19 August 2025.
  6. ^ "Lyttleton gets new, post-quake school". RNZ. 10 May 2016. Archived from the original on 9 October 2025. Retrieved 19 September 2025.
  7. ^ "$14.9m Lyttelton Primary School officially open". www.beehive.govt.nz. 23 June 2016. Archived from the original on 10 February 2019. Retrieved 19 September 2025.
  8. ^ "New Lyttelton Primary School officially opened". Education Gazette. 4 July 2016. Archived from the original on 31 January 2018. Retrieved 19 September 2025.
  9. ^ Gates, Charlie (23 June 2015). "Loons theatre finds new home". Stuff. Archived from the original on 13 September 2025. Retrieved 8 September 2025.
  10. ^ Gates, Charlie (19 August 2015). "Loons take flight". The Press. pp. A.17. ProQuest 1704789757.
  11. ^ Young, Conan (2 August 2015). "Lyttelton theatre company makes comeback". RNZ. Archived from the original on 4 August 2025. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  12. ^ Cropp, Amanda (29 September 2016). "Big donor flooded with requests". The Press. pp. A.10. ProQuest 1823977941.
  13. ^ "The Loons Theatre Trust - We have a NEW home in Lyttelton!" (PDF). Lyttelton Review (146): 4–5. June 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 February 2021.
  14. ^ "Lyttelton Arts Factory". Lyttelton Harbour Information Centre. Archived from the original on 28 March 2025. Retrieved 21 September 2025.
  15. ^ Gates, Charlie (17 June 2016). "Cabaret night first up for new theatre". The Press. pp. A.4. ProQuest 1797411605.
  16. ^ Gates, Charlie (15 July 2016). "Funny start to Loons' new era". The Press. pp. A.14. ProQuest 1803850639.
  17. ^ Gates, Charlie (11 July 2016). "The long road home". The Press. pp. A.11. ProQuest 1802651497.
  18. ^ Gates, Charlie (24 December 2016). "Classic tale with a modern twist". The Press. pp. A.16. ProQuest 1851742064.
  19. ^ "Global Voices: Twenty years of song". The Press. 1 July 2016. pp. A.15. ProQuest 1800522966.
  20. ^ Fletcher, Jack (22 June 2018). "A show where animals can share a beer at the bar". The Press. p. 8. ProQuest 2057541547.
  21. ^ Anderson, Vicki (6 November 2020). "Horsing around of all stripes". The Press. p. 12. ProQuest 2457700054.
  22. ^ Gates, Charlie (9 May 2022). "New dance company sees the light". The Press. p. 10. ProQuest 2660651626.
  23. ^ "Sharp contrast in shows". The Press. 24 April 2018. pp. A.13. ProQuest 2029041476.
  24. ^ Gates, Charlie (21 June 2021). "Ashton's award-winning show comes home to city". The Press. p. 8. ProQuest 2543151233.
  25. ^ "The Blams rise from wreckage". Sunday News. 21 July 2019. p. 40. ProQuest 2260477486 – via Stuff.
  26. ^ "Celebrating our heritage". The Press. 14 October 2016. pp. A.15. ProQuest 1828279473.
  27. ^ "Spirited story of football underdog". The Press. 18 July 2017. pp. A.13. ProQuest 1919588094.
  28. ^ Fletcher, Jack (5 September 2018). "NZ mountain film festival scaling new heights". The Press. p. 9. ProQuest 2099096967.
  29. ^ Fletcher, Jack (17 September 2018). "Building site design finalised". The Press. p. 5. ProQuest 2104691628.
  30. ^ "Funny, generous, and a giant of NZ art". The Timaru Herald. 6 February 2021. p. 19. ProQuest 2486499507.
  31. ^ "Traffic Cop Bay". collections.tepapa.govt.nz. Retrieved 21 September 2025.
  32. ^ "Let's Put Bill on the Wall • McLeavey Gallery". mcleaveygallery.com. Archived from the original on 7 July 2025. Retrieved 21 September 2025.
  33. ^ "Bill Hammond now on the wall in Lyttelton". www.pggallery192.co.nz. 20 February 2024. Archived from the original on 21 March 2025. Retrieved 21 September 2025.
  34. ^ "LAF Project". Sign Network. Archived from the original on 20 February 2025. Retrieved 21 September 2025.
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