It seemed to be game over. Now it’s not.

After City of Sydney’s Central Sydney Planning Committee gave conditional consent to property developer Central Element to turn the historic Metro-Minerva Theatre into a 63-room boutique hotel last year, hopes that the art deco landmark would return as a theatre venue seemed dashed.

Now it appears that the property has been bought by Gretel Packer’s company Sacred Firebird for about $26m. Given Packer’s record as an arts philanthropist (and her deep pockets), it seems possible that the 1000-seat theatre might return as a hub for live performance.

Built in 1939, the Minerva was masterminded by the Tivoli circuit impresario David N. Martin and live shows were staged there until 1950. MGM then converted it into a cinema, the Metro Theatre.

Live theatre returned to the Metro in 1969, when Harry M Miller installed the Australian production of Hair in the venue. The building was later acquired by Kennedy Miller Mitchell Productions and served as its operational base until the building was sold again in 2019.

Since then, the arts community has lobbied hard for the site to become a theatre and the campaign attracted many high-profile names,...