The Downstage Theatre Company was established in 1964 as a professional theatre company. The founders at the inaugural meeting in the Wellington Public Library on 15 May 1964 were actors Peter Bland, Tim Eliott and Martyn Sanderson, and restaurateur Harry Seresin. Sanderson believed in a small professional company in Wellington performing challenging works in an intimate venue. Seresin owned the Walkaboutcoffee baron the corner of Courtenay Place and Cambridge Terrace in Wellington, and the upper floor of the Walkabout is where the first Downstage Theatre productions were performed. The first locally-written production, in 1966, was Father's Day a dark social comedy by Peter Bland starring Pat Evison as the eccentric mother with two pregnant daughters. In 1968 the company took over the whole upper storey of the Walkabout coffee bar building with a remodelling that was designed by B. Woods as the major project in his final year at the Wellington School of Design. It was a theatre restaurant, where people dined and saw a show in the same space. The Downstage Theatre Company continued to operate from the Walkabout coffee bar building until plans for a purpose built theatre building were finalised. They moved to the Star Boating Club building in the early 1970s while the Hannah Playhouse was being built. Raymond Boyce MBE, a leading theatre set and costume designer, was on the board of Downstage when the playhouse was built, Boyce became design consultant to the architects Ron Parker and James Beard, influencing the design of the flexible stage area and auditorium. The Hannah Playhouse approximately 250 people was completed in 1973. The first play in the new building was Shakespeare's As You Like It directed by Sunny Amey. Downstage published a quarterly magazine Act about theatre that included publishing play scripts. In 1973 Downstage supported the beginning of Playmarket, New Zealands agent for playwrights by allocating some staff time of Nonnita Rees plus office space. Act magazine continued with Playmarket picking it up in 1975 after Downstage decided they could no longer fund this activity. Downstage Theatre closed in 2013, citing a lack of adequate and stable funding.
Leadership
Founding artistic directors Martyn Sanderson, Tim Elliott, Peter Bland. The director position of Downstage Theatre has had a variety of forms and titles.
