The New Melville Theatre came to our attention in July, 2005, when its proprietor and veteran rock ‘n roller, Peter Taylor, offered the venue to an ailing Rhodie musician – former Shalima “skins man” Peter Price – in a fundraising drive to allow him to have much needed surgery to one of his legs. Despite not being a Rhodie, Peter Taylor’s offer led to a very festive gig being held at his venue on 12 July, 2005, at which local music luminaries (such as Alistair Coakley) appeared. The event contributed significant funds to Peter Price’s cause.
Peter Taylor has had a long held ambition to own an intimate theatre and reached a stage in 2004 when he decided to finally “go for it”. Throwing caution to the wind he acquired the “Stage Door” – as it was known at the time – and went about converting into the theatre of his dreams. Peter literally threw everything he possessed into the project, even selling his house, undertaking most of the work himself and frequently slept on the premises to ensure minimum disruption to the work’s progress. He modestly says that he was motivated by the desire “to give something back” to the community. Peter has staged a number of exciting functions and deserves all the support he can get so, if you’re down Johannesburg way, do make a special effort to put in an appearance.
The theatre’s telephone number is: 011 – 482 – 7981.