Princess Theatre

As you leave the Parliament Gardens, your eyes are drawn almost unwillingly to the opulent façade of the beautiful Princess Theatre right across the street. It’s one of Melbourne’s most stunning buildings and a real reminder of the city’s wealth during the Gold Rush. Inaugurated in 1854, it’s the oldest entertainment venue still standing in Australia! This legendary 1470-seat theatre always sold out! It was rebuilt in 1886 to the designs of the famous Melbourne architect William Pitt, who also built many important commercial buildings in the Victorian era. The new design embodies the exuberance of the Second Empire period and is sure to impress! The Princess Theatre was cutting-edge back then, with a retractable roof – the first of its kind – and even electric stage lights! Critics even said it was as beautiful as the Paris Opera House. But the coolest thing about this theater might be its resident ghost. Many claim to have seen it. Let me explain. On the evening of March 3, 1888, baritone Frédéric Federici was performing as Mephistopheles in Faust, an opera by Charles Gounod. Everything was going well until the last scene, where his character dramatically returns to the underworld. The artist had to leave the stage through a trapdoor and disappear. Sadly, the man died of a massive heart attack; he was only 37 years old. But here’s the weird part: other actors swore they saw him come back out for a final bow, even though the doctor had pronounced him dead before the end of the play. Since then, several members of the theater staff have claimed to have seen his ghost hanging around the opera house. Maybe it’s the spirit of a true artist who couldn’t bring himself to leave his work unfinished, or maybe it’s just a bunch of people seeing things. Who knows? Either way, for many years they kept a seat empty in his honor on opening nights.