Auckland Town Hall

Town hall opened in 1911 This 5 story building was specially designed to fit a triangular shaped plot of land. It resemblances Lambeth Town Hall in London. This was Auckland's first permanent seat of both administration & entertainment in the city. The Great Hall seats 1,673 people, modeled on the Gewandhaus in Leipzig, considered having among the best acoustics in the world.

The exterior of the Edwardian building is constructed of 2 types of stone. The ground floor is made of a dark volcanic basalt, heavily rusticated, contrasting with pale stonework above. Oamaru limestone from the south island was used for the upper part of the building. The lower part is often assumed to be Auckland basalt but was actually sourced from Melbourne. . The five-storey building was specially designed to fit the wedge-shaped piece of land that had been acquired for it in the 1870s at the junction of Queen Street and Grey Street. It bears a striking resemblance to the Lambeth Town Hall at Brixton, London, built at around the same time. The Town Hall formed Auckland's first permanent seat of both administration and entertainment in the city's history, with its Great Hall (seating 1,673 people) modelled on the Gewandhaus in Leipzig, and considered as having among the finest acoustics in the world.

The exterior is constructed of two types of stone; the ground floor is made of a dark volcanic basalt, heavily rusticated, which contrasts with the pale stonework of the upper storeys. Oamaru limestone from the south island was used for the upper part of the building. The lower part was from Melbourne, in Australia.

Although the Town Hall is quite a small and intimate venue to go for a concert, nothing quite compares to the experience that you get when this place goes off. The floorboards literally move beneath your feet and you feel as if you're on a trampoline. No lies! I swear it's the craziest feeling when you're moshing to the Smashing Pumpkins and you can jump twice as high as normal. I wonder if there will come a day when that floor caves in, leaving a big messy pile of punk-rockers sprawling on the ground.

The Town Hall hosts quieter and more civilised entertainment too, orchestras and the like, but I haven't seen any. I'm way too hardcore.

The Town Hall bisects Queen St along with Aotea Square and looks down toward the water with it's big, old clock tower. With the re-branding of The Big Little City is nice to have this cultural icon sitting in place.

I have enjoyed a wide variety of entertainment here including thumping house music, silent discos and classical music. The wooden floor flexing under the beat of jumping ravers or the walls echoing with Wagner's Valkyries- each special in their own way. Sometimes you can catch a talented organist playing the hall's grand organ. Everyone should visit this venue at some stage, to enjoy the entertainment, the acoustics and the heritage of Auckland.

I love the Town Hall's baroque-style, Omaru limestone facade and its clock tower that has faithfully kept time since 1911. The interior is equally pleasing in design. Stained glass windows, a magnificent winding staircase - with ornate cast-iron balustrades and beautiful Kauri floors are but a few of the features that help transcend a concert experience into something rather special, here. So head over to the Auckland Town Hall for an evening out with a touch of grandeur!

The Town Hall is an amazing venue. The acoustics in the Great Hall are fantastic and I've enjoyed going to the Town Hall for events from the NZ Symphony Orchestra to Techno and House events like Chemistry. Aside from the Great Hall there is also the Concert Chamber where I've seen quite a few theatre productions like Assassins,and also some shows at the comedy festival. Again the acoustics are great so it's ideal for this. The Edge run the venue pretty well too, although I always wish they offered a greater selection of drinks and snacks!

Auckland bulldozed plenty of it's gorgeous heritage buildings in the latter 20th century. Thankfully the Town Hall still stands peculiarly wedge-shaped presiding over the midtown area of Queen Street. From the outside, the old girl is in fantastic nick - it's especially gorgeous at night bathed in white lights. The Town Hall is used for a few things. For one, it contains the Council chambers - it's the civic heart of Auckland. However, for most of Auckland's cultured citizens, it's much better known and appreciated for its Great Hall which is perhaps Auckland's best venue acoustically. The hall hosts plenty - from rock and rap all the way through to orchestras and comedy. Whatever it's hosting, there's rather a special sense of occasion here that makes your evening a little more special.

Is this the best building in Auckland? Maybe. Maybe not as good as the Art Gallery. It's pretty bloody awesome though. I'm down with the town hall. The concert chamber within often plays host to touring musical acts, and bigger ticket plays. I've seen lots of shows there and they've almost always been really really great. One thing which is really interesting, which will cause me to remove a star, is that the seats they have in the concert chamber are pretty shitty. You'd think that when you have this really classy building, you'd get some great seats.

Wow what a beautiful place to see a concert or any cultural event. Very well located in the middle of the city and the room is just sublime. Sound quality is also good and appropriate for the nz Symphony Orchestra or classic music. Nice time and great place to get some cultural brain foods

Full respect for the Auckland City council for their initiative to restore and preserve this iconic venue. For years on end the Auckland Town Hall was covered in builders scaffolding, suspiciously long actually, inefficient government employed labor force at its finest, but the end result was good. I am surprised by how large it is inside, it appears to be a fairly modest theater from the outside, but it is actually quite massive. This place used to be a favorite for popular international acts who were playing Auckland shows, sadly nowadays most of them opt for Vector Arena because of its superior capacity. This is a real shame, Auckland Town Hall has a much more balanced acoustic potential, and it also has a lot more character.