_root.TextBody = "The Playhouse space has had a number of different names and catered to many varieties of the performing arts. Seating 398 people, the Playhouse is the ideal venue for small, intimate productions. \r\rQuite recently the Playhouse has been used by many established touring theatre companies such as Bell Shakespeare, the Ensemble Theatre and the Sydney Theatre Company. When not used to stage theatrical productions it reverts to its original function as a music venue.\r\rHowever, it is only now that the Playhouse is adjusting comfortably to its dual purpose. For many years, the space jumped from name to name and function to function - from The Music Room, to The Cinema and finally The Playhouse. \r\rAs \'The Music Room\', this space was built in order to present mainly chamber music and solo recitalists. The inaugural performance was presented by Musica Viva, Australia\'s leading chamber music group, and featured a recital by the Carl Pini String Quartet with soloists Romola Constantino on piano and Walter Sutcliffe on double bass. Musica Viva went on to both perform and produce a number of concerts in The Music Room. However, as Musica Viva\'s popularity grew, necessitating a larger performing space, they transferred most of their performances to the Concert Hall.\r\rAfter that, The Music Room slowly came to be used as a cinema and it evolved to the point where it had a change of name - to \'The Cinema\' - the venue\'s next official incarnation. A wide range of films were presented here. The space was used by the Australian Film Institute and the National Film Theatre of Australia as a screening room that showed many classic films and new documentaries. \r\rHowever, cinemas around Sydney began to grow and provide competition for the space in the Opera House and attendance began to decline. Fortunately there was a solution at hand. The Ensemble Theatre, based in North Sydney, had its theatre closed for renovations, and moved into The Cinema temporarily. The stage was extended, reducing the number of seats, and the Cinema proved to be an excellent space for small scale productions. The space changed names again - to \'The Playhouse\'.\r\rSince that time, the Playhouse has presented many different productions. It has quite a small stage, being about 13 metres (at its greatest breadth), 7 metres deep and 6.7 metres high. It has minimal wing space, which makes it ideal for single set dramatic productions. The auditorium uses White Birch veneer panelling for its walls, and charcoal grey merino wool as seat covers. The audience in the Playhouse often feel very involved in the performances, simply because the auditorium is quite small. \r";
