Tributes flow as Gympie arts community mourns death of Peter Blyth

Gympie’s arts community is mourning the death of beloved Zodiac Players founder Peter Blyth, whose legacy in the region spans more than 50 years.

Beloved Zodiac Players founder Peter Blyth has been remembered as a director and producer with “vision” and a “complex genius” following his death on Thursday March 30, 2023, at age 76.

Gympie’s arts community is mourning a beloved icon of its theatre scene following the death of Zodiac Players founder Peter Blyth.

Mr Blyth was a founding member of the Zodiac Players in 1971.

The company’s shows were a constant draw in the region across the decades, with productions ranging from traditional stage shows to restaurant theatre.

Mr Blyth was aged 76 when he died at Noosa.

Longtime friend and collaborator Rita O’Neil, who knew and worked with Mr Blyth for more than 50 years, said he was a driving force in the region’s arts scene and its success.

Zodiac Players Ian Wenzel and Peter Blyth in October 2022 at the Witham Theatre at Crescent St which they were fighting to keep from being sold off by Gympie Regional Council over another group’s unpaid rates bill.

“He was a man of vision,” Ms O’Neil said, adding he knew “what he wanted and knew he was right”.

“He was the best director and producer I have ever worked with,” she said.

“He will be very sadly missed.”

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Brendan Allen, who had known Mr Blyth for 25 years and worked with him on productions of Annie, Grease, Joseph, and Kevin 07, was a “complex genius”.

“I had the amazing opportunity to work closely with him on a number of projects and his influence on me and the wider community is irreplaceable,” Mr Allen said.

Peter Blyth (front right) with the cast of Shrek Jnr.

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“There was and forever will be one Peter Blyth.”

Mr Blyth was a fixture of the arts scene, and a staunch advocate for its growth and survival across Gympie.

As late as October 2022 he was pushing Gympie Regional Council to reconsider selling a historic old church, used as a rehearsal and storage space, over unpaid rates.

The rates bill was not owed by the Zodiac Players.

Gympie and District Eisteddfod president Thelma Reisenleiter said the organisation was saddened to hear of Mr Blyth’s death.

“His contribution to the arts has been extraordinary,” Mrs Reisenleiter said.

“We as an organisation have appreciated his support over many years.”

She said his contributions to Gympie’s cultural scene were “tremendous”.

Originally published as Tributes flow as Gympie arts community mourns death of Peter Blyth