Devastating Fire Destroys The Dust Palace's Stored Circus Equipment And Theatre Assets
Auckland, NZ – A massive fire in the early hours of Sunday morning June 9th has completely destroyed the storage facility housing all of The Dust Palace's circus props, aerial equipment, costumes, and recently donated theatre seating.
The fire broke out in a commercial warehouse on Maurice Road in Penrose just before 1am on June 8, with over 50 firefighters responding to the blaze. Among the tenants of the facility was The Dust Palace Trust, a renowned circus and performing arts organisation known for its community engagement, national touring productions, and kaupapa Māori-led education programmes.
The fire resulted in the total loss of more than 15 years of creative material, including hand-crafted set pieces, specialist circus gear, and the full inventory of aerial rigging equipment. Also lost were newly donated theatre seats used in the recent production of Haus of YOLO at Ellerslie Arts—seats that were destined to support the creation of affordable performance spaces.
'The damage is catastrophic,' says Grae Burton, Chair of The Dust Palace Trust. 'This is more than just equipment—this is the creative heartbeat of years of mahi, training, and generosity from our community.'
The Trust has launched a Givealittle page to raise funds to rebuild and recover. Donations will go toward replacing essential equipment so that upcoming shows, community classes, and youth outreach can continue as planned.
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