Hamilton Musical Theatre is an amateur musical theatre organisation based in Hamilton, New Zealand. It was formerly known as Musikmakers.
Musikmakers was registered as an Incorporated Society in 1978,[1] but the society did not find a permanent home until the council purchased the building which had been home to the Orange Garden Cabaret on Riverlea Rd. In 1984, Musikmakers was part of a cooperative venture between Playbox, the Theatre Technique Trust and the Waikato Society of Potters to establish the Riverlea Theatre and Arts Centre.[2]
The society performed musical theatre under the Musikmakers name until April 2021, when the society was re-incorporated as the Hamilton Musical Theatre. The first performance given under the new name was A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, with music by Stephen Sondheim, in May 2021.[3] This was the first major production since the easing of restrictions because of the COVID-19 pandemic.[4]