The first President was Captain William Lonsdale, the first Patron was the Superintendent of Port Phillip, Charles La Trobe and the first books were donated by Vice-President Henry Fyshe Gisborne. Originally called the Melbourne Mechanics' Institute, it was renamed in 1846 to the Melbourne Mechanics' Institution and School of Arts. The building at 188 Collins Street was completed in 1842. The Melbourne City Council met in the building until 1852 when the Melbourne Town Hall was built. The Institution changed its name to the Melbourne Athenaeum in 1872. At that time, as now, a focal point was the library. In 1877, membership was 1,681 and in 1879 there were 30,000 visits to the library. In 1880 it was reported 'that the floor of the large hall was the only one in Melbourne expressly constructed for dancing'. The front of the building was rebuilt in 1885 and 1886.
Theatre and cinema
In October 1896, the first movie was shown in Australia in the Athenaeum Hall. The Hall became a regular venue for screening films and the premiere of The Story of the Kelly Gang by the Tait brothers, the world's first dramatic feature film, was at the Athenaeum in 1906. The theatre in its present form, a proscenium arch theatre with 880 seats on three levels, was created in 1924, designed by Henry Eli White. It was the first venue in Australia to screen talking pictures, presenting The Jazz Singer in February 1929. From the 1920s to the early 1970s, the theatre was mainly used as a cinema. The Melbourne Theatre Company leased the theatre from 1976 to 1985 when the lease was taken over by various entrepreneurs who formed AT Management in 1997. The upstairs studio theatre, created from the former art gallery by the MTC, has been used as a theatre space and the venue for The Last LaughComedy Club after it moved from North Melbourne.
Membership of the Athenaeum's subscription library peaked at 7,579 in 1950, after the State Library of Victoria ceased lending of its books in 1939. Membership reduced over the subsequent decades to 1,600 by the mid-1980s, and 750 by the late 2000s. Membership is now increasing.
Today
Today, the Athenaeum Theatre is used for theatre, comedy and music performances, including as a principal venue for the Melbourne International Comedy Festival and Melbourne Opera. The Wheeler Centre for Books, Writing and Ideas presents discussions and talks at the theatre. The Hillsong Church also uses the theatre for its Sunday services. The subscription library has a 30,000-strong collection and hosts regular events, talks, book clubs and a screen club.
