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Trocadero

A huge replica of a green Dutch windmill, complete with rotating sails, decorated the Green Mill dance hall, located in Wirth's Park on the corner of St Kilda Road and Sturt Street, South Melbourne. 'Melbourne's Quaintest Dance Rendezvous' opened on 7 September 1926 under the direction of Tom Carlyon and Fred Matear. The Green Mill could accommodate 3000 people and was one of Melbourne's most popular dance venues. The novel interior included a miniature lake ('the Zuyder Zee', complete with waterwheel and fernery) and hostesses in green Dutch costumes. Another attraction was the massive blue ceiling, which glittered with twinkling stars. Attendances declined during the depression, and in 1933 the venue was relaunched as the Forty Club. A few years later it became the Trocadero, which, despite being damaged by fire in 1940, survived to become a popular meeting place for servicemen during the war. The 'Troc' closed in the 1950s and was replaced on the site by the Arts Centre.

Lucy Shedden And Frank Van Straten