OLD THEATRES MAGAZINE EXCLUSIVE: THE LONDON PALLADIUM

OLD THEATRES MAGAZINE EXCLUSIVE: THE LONDON PALLADIUM

Many of Britain’s now offer audiences the opportunity of back stage tours. But there is one theatre in its capitol that presents a visit which excels—the famous London Palladium.

On one day each month, this stunning Grade 2* listed Frank Matcham designed theatre, opens its doors up to the public who want to explore its ‘living’ history.

Standing on an important theatrical site, the ‘grand old lady’ of Argyll Street is enjoyed by audiences the world over; and for artistes who have appeared on stage there, it has been the highlight of their lives.

For theatre devotees, back stage tours are a ‘must’ for young and old—an experience to be savoured. But just to tread its boards on stage is a privilege and an honour.

When OT visited the theatre at the end of last year, we asked to join a tour to get visitors’ reactions on their experience. Everyone we spoke to described their visit as ‘amazing’ and ‘fantastic’.

The party gathered in the theatre foyer before being welcomed by tour guide, Mark Fox, Advertising Manager of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Really Useful Company, who explained the history of the site and the construction of Matcham’s theatre in 1910 which retains the façade of an earlier hall of entertainment for Hengler’s Circus, a National Skating Palace and a Corinthian Bazaar.

A mine of information, Mark clearly enjoys being a ‘tour de force’ as, accompanied by his ushers—(some of the great theatre’s former Tiller Girls)—he invited his party to join him in the theatre’s lounge and in the stalls best seats!

The moment to go through the pass door on to the stage was a wonderful highlight as the group stood in awe, seeing the stars first sight of an audience as they walk on to make their first entrance.

(Published by permission from Old Theatres Magazine.)
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OLD THEATRES magazine is recognised as Britain’s most unique magazine for everyone who appreciates the value of our country’s wonderful halls of entertainment and the artistes who have trod their boards. It features ‘lost’ theatres, old theatres which have been restored, stories of artistes’ experiences in them, together with extra information which is not normally obtainable in other theatre publications. Each highly collectable edition contains over 100 rare illustrations and articles about theatres past and present, enabling subscribers to go behind the scenes to see how they operate, and read their histories and hopes for the future.

More details about Britain’s OLD THEATRES magazine can be seen on their web pages www.oldtheatres.co.uk or email OLD THEATRES directly at  oldtheatres@googlemail.com.

MANISTEE, MI — New grant sets the stage for historic theatre renovation

New grant sets the stage for historic theatre renovation
by Roxanne Werly | Published by UpNorthLive.com
5-14-2013

MANISTEE — A historic renovation project in Manistee is getting a new financial boost, one that will help wrap up the fundraising campaign.

A grant of $503,592 has been approved by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation to support the restoration of the Vogue Theatre.

“The renovation of this historic theatre into a vibrant entertainment venue will bring new vitality to downtown Manistee and serve as a catalyst for further positive activity in the community,” said MEDC President and CEO Michael A. Finney. “We are pleased to support the efforts of the entire community in restoring the Vogue Theatre and bringing new life to the downtown area.”

The restoration project started in February, 2011, with construction crews starting phase one of the project two years later in February, 2013. Phase one focused on the interior demolition to get ready to pour concrete for new theatre floors.

The MEDC and Historic Vogue Theatre of Manistee (HVTM) nonprofit must now enter into an agreement that establishes terms and conditions of the grant award involving allowable costs, schedules for use of funds and project completion, documentation of other restoration funding and others.

“The restoration and reopening of the Vogue Theatre will be a change agent for the Manistee community and this grant from the MEDC is the catalyst needed to make our vision and reality,” said Cyndy Fuller, Chair of the HVTM Board of Directors. “It is with the profound thanks of an entire community that we express our appreciation to the MEDC and the many staff throughout their organization that support our grant request.” The grant application was developed by the Alliance for Economic Success on behalf of the HVTM.

“This is a wonderful moment for the hundreds of people who have given their time and treasures to bring the Vogue Theatre back to life,” said Vogue volunteer leader Meg Voelker. “The MEDC clearly understood how their grant could leverage great things for art and entertainment while service as the rainmaker to bring businesses and jobs to what will become a bustling downtown Manistee.”

(Click here for the entire article.)

Greenbelt, MD — Old Greenbelt Theatre Wins $75K Grant

Old Greenbelt Theatre Wins $75K Grant
By Sonia Dasgupta | Published by greenbelt.patch.com
May 14, 2013

After receiving a large number of votes in the Partners in Preservation contest, the Greenbelt theater was awarded money for renovations.

The Old Greenbelt Theatre will be able to renovate its art deco lobby, after it was awarded a $75,000 grant from Partners in Preservation.

For nearly a month, the Greenbelt theater competed against other historic places in the DC metro area for the possibility of winning some grant money to help them renovate.

Although they did not take first place, they were still awarded $75,000 after a committee reviewed their needs.

(Click here to read the full coverage from the patch.com. Click here to read the official press release.)

FOCUS ON 2013 CONCLAVE: Proctor’s Theater, Troy

Our third venue visit on 2013′s Conclave Theatre Tour will be to:

PROCTOR’S THEATRE
82 Fourth Street, Troy, N.Y.
OPENED: 1914
ARCHITECT: Arlard W. Johnson
STYLE: Adamesque
CAPACITY: 2,287 (original)
WEBSITE: troyproctors.com

Today’s Proctor’s Theater in Troy is not as fortunate as its Schenectady namesake, but it is well on its way to a return to glory.

In 1914, F.F. Proctor built the Troy showplace for the kingly sum of $325,000 and was originally named “Proctor’s Fourth Street” to avoid confusion with Proctor’s other theaters in that city. Proctor, who had already built and operated several successful vaudeville theaters in Albany and New York City, hired Arlard Johnson to design the theater, and succeeded in creating his grandest venue since entering the theatrical business nearly three decades before. It was praised as “a structure ranking foremost in American theatrical circles.”

A highly decorative front facade of brick and marble covered in glazed terra-cotta distinguishes the five-story building. On the ground level, rusticated columns rise up to lions’ heads. Five engaged marble columns frame the upper floors, rising to gargoyle-like figures and two towers rise above the roofline at either end of the facade.

Though its interior was ornate, the Adamsesque décor resembled more a late 19th Century opera house than the exotic and extravagant movie palaces of the twenties. Still, its towering proscenium arch was framed by gilded plasterwork, and imported crystal chandeliers hung in the lobby and over the auditorium. Boasting two balconies, the theater is unique in that there are no stairs leading to the upper levels. Patrons negotiate a series of ramps to access the balconies.

The theater billed as “Troy’s Largest Amusement Palace,” was originally home to touring vaudeville productions. It premiered an early film in 1914, Mother’s Penitent, starring Baby Early. In 1917 Fred and Adele Astaire performed what was billed as “new song and distinctive dance,” on Proctor’s stage. By the late twenties, it was used primarily as a movie palace.

The theater performed well through the sixities, but by the early seventies it had turned to adult features. By the mid-seventies it was back to Hollywood fare but was taken by the City of Troy in 1977 in lieu of back taxes and was closed.

Over the years, many groups have tried to gain control of the building to restore and redevelop the property, none of which have been successful.  Finally in late 2011, Columbia Development Companies acquired the building with the help of a $14.4 million public-private project grant (including $3.3 million from the Restore New York Communities Initiative) and launched the restoration. Work began on the office and retail portion of the building.

Today, the restoration work continues to move forward. The theater is still a work in progress and access will be limited to selected areas. However, THS feels that this emerging project is certainly worthy of our attention as a Conclave destination as our presence will generate much needed publicity for the efforts. We ask that our attendees exercise due caution and enjoy this rare opportunity for a “hard hat” tour of the next great New York State rehabilitation project.

WHY ARE WE SEEING IT?
An endangered movie palace, which is listed on the National Register. Derelict but under reclamation. Our visit will assist the preservation group’s efforts to garner attention and support for this project.

Register for the 2013 Conclave Theatre Tour online.
(Portions of the above text are courtesy of Don Rittner and Brian Krefft.)

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Photographer (and THS Member) Matt Lambros  visited Proctor’s Theater last year and documented the current state of the building. Make sure you visit afterthefinalcurtain.net to see what he found.

Follow his work on facebook here.

News from across the Pond

Here are two interesting articles on theatre goings-on across the pond from the United States of America.

On vacation in Vietnam, Friends of the Boyd (Philly, PA) volunteer Mike Bencik blogged about attending historic movie theaters there and about Philadelphia’s Boyd on his personal blog.

Thanks to THS Member Howard Haas (Philly, PA) for passing it along!
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Ken Bloom, THS Publications Director, also passed on this link from thestage.co.uk about Andrew Lloyd Webber restoring Drury Lane to its ‘original Georgian splendour.’

Find out more about the 4 million pound renovation.

FOCUS ON 2013 CONCLAVE: Palace Theatre, Albany

Our second venue visit on 2013′s Conclave Theatre Tour will be to:

PALACE THEATRE
19 Clinton Street, Albany, NY
OPENED: October 23, 1931
ARCHITECT: John Eberson
STYLE: Mixed Baroque/Semi-Atmospheric
CAPACITY: 3,659 (original) 2,844 (current)
WEBSITE: palacealbany.com

The Palace Theatre first opened its doors in October of 1931 as the largest theatre in a city already noted for a number of opulent movie houses.

Designed by John Eberson, the RKO-owned facility spared no expense in its design and boasted an ornate Austrian Baroque theme with “atmospheric” elements in the auditorium. Though many changes have taken place since its opening, the Palace has retained most of its original design features, including an impressive brass chandelier in the main lobby, original murals painted by Andrew Karoly and Jules Zartol, and plaster beams in the fore-lobby painted to resemble carved wood.

Originally presenting vaudeville acts between feature films, the Palace Theatre was uniquely able to weather the advent of the “talkies.” Due to its size and location, the Palace became Albany’s premiere first-run movie house and remained reasonably successful. After World War II, however, the advent of television, the rise of suburbia, and the virtual abandonment of downtown areas in general all contributed to the Palace’s declining fortunes and, despite a $250,000 renovation in 1960, the theatre continued to lose money.

The doors finally closed in September 1969. Soon after, the City of Albany purchased the theater for $90,000 to use as a civic auditorium. In 1979, the Palace Theatre was placed on the National Register of Historic Places. Slow and steady restoration work and physical enhancements over the years have brought the Palace back to prominence, the sole survivor of the Golden Age of Albany’s movie theater era.

Today, the Palace Theatre continues to host a widely diverse offering of popular acts and cultural events. Artists such as the Rolling Stones, Jerry Seinfeld, Roy Orbison, Tony Bennett, and Melissa Etheridge have shared the stage with the Albany Symphony Orchestra, world-class ballet, Broadway touring shows, family and children’s theater, city-sponsored events, and a classic Hollywood film series.

WHY ARE WE SEEING IT?
Stunning example of an Eberson palace design – fully restored and successfully operational.

Register for the 2013 Conclave Theatre Tour online.
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(Portions of this text are courtesy of the Palace Albany’s website.)

FOCUS ON 2013 CONCLAVE: Proctors, Schenectady

Our first venue visit on 2013′s Conclave Theatre Tour will be to:

PROCTORS THEATRE
432 State Street, Schenectady, N.Y.
OPENED: December 27, 1926
ARCHITECT: Thomas W. Lamb
STYLE: Adamesque
CAPACITY: 3,000
WEBSITE: proctors.org

Frederick Francis Proctor, known today as the Dean of Vaudeville, opened his newest theatre with the film Stranded in Paris. The new theatre cost $1.5 million. Though the theatre had a capacity of 3,000, on the first day there were 7,100 paid admissions for the afternoon and evening shows. Tickets were priced at thirty-five cents for orchestra seats for the afternoon show and fifty cents for the evening show. Opening night audiences thrilled to the $50,000, three-manual Wurlitzer organ. In addition to film showings, Proctors also hosted stage shows. In 1929, Proctor sold his theatre chain to Radio Keith Orpheum (RKO). Al Jolson, Ben Bernie, Red Skelton, Blackstone, Bob Hope, Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy, Burns and Allen, and many others appeared at Proctors.

On May 22, 1930, Proctors was the site of the first public demonstration of television. Witnessed by science writers from all over the country, a theatre orchestra was led by the image of a conductor a mile away in a General Electric laboratory. The signal was broadcast on a seven-foot screen.

Like many theatres, the thirties, forties, and fifties were successful but by the seventies, the theatre business was rocky at best. In 1970, the city of Schenectady took over when the theatre defaulted on its taxes and planned to demolish the theatre. On June 27, 1977, the community rallied and formed the Arts Center and Theatre of Schenectady (ACTS). Two years later, ACTS was given the deed to the theatre for one dollar. The theatre reopened with a sold out house and the theatre was designated as a State and National Historic Landmark.

The eighties saw a gradual restoration including, in 1984, the dedication of “Goldie,” a 3/18 Mighty Wurlitzer Organ. Constructed in 1931 and originally housed at the Paramount Theatre (Aurora, Illinois), Proctors’ Mighty Wurlitzer has been delighting audiences since it was first installed in 1983. This three-manual, 18-rank organ has 1,400 pipes, a full set of percussion instruments, and a grand piano that can be played from the organ console. Since the installation of “Goldie,” the Hudson-Mohawk Chapter of the American Theatre Organ Society (ATOS), has worked closely with the management of Proctors and provides the services of the organists who perform organ concerts there. Hudson-Mohawk ATOS members will be joining us as we visit the theater to demonstrate their pride and joy.

Today, the Proctors complex now features the main theater, a 434-seat black box theater known as the G.E. Theatre which is capable of hosting everything from conventions to large format movies, and The Underground at Proctors. The current administration changed their name from “Proctor’s” to “Proctors,” eliminating the apostrophe to reflect that they are now more than just the main theatre. In a “wink” to the punctuation change, the new lobby coffee shop was dubbed “Apostrophe.”

WHY ARE WE SEEING IT ON CONCLAVE?
Proctors is a nationally recognized success story illustrating how a restored theatre acts as a catalyst for downtown resurrection. An excellent example of F.F. Proctor’s theatre empire.

Register for the 2013 Conclave Theatre Tour online.

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(Portions of this text are courtesy of the Proctors, Schenectady website. )

Flavorwire.com’s “Most Beautiful Movie Theatres in the World” List

Have you had an opportunity to check out Flavorwire.com’s Most Beautiful Movie Theatres in the World list yet?

#10 is the Palace Theatre in Albany, one of the theatres we will visit on this year’s Conclave Theatre Tour.

What is your list of the top ten most beautiful theatres?

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Many thanks to THS Member Howard Haas for the link!

San Francisco, CA — Revamp proposal for Alexandria Theater in San Francisco up for key approval

Revamp proposal for Alexandria Theater in San Francisco up for key approval
By Mike Billings, Assistant Managing Editor |Published by SFExaminer.com
April 24, 2013

The proposed plan for the former three-screen Alexandria Theater include a single-screen cinema as well as a new 7,000-square-foot restaurant space.
The Alexandria Theater in the Richmond district has been closed for nearly a decade, but a plan that could revitalize the corner where it sits on Geary Boulevard is up for a key city vote today.

The Planning Commission is expected to consider a project that would revamp the theater, add commercial space and build new housing. The theater closed in 2004 after eight decades of operation, but has since fallen into disrepair.

Under the plan, the three-screen theater would be changed to a 221-seat, single-screen venue, according to planning documents. There would be retail on the ground floor of the building, and a new 7,000-square-foot restaurant space on the second floor.

Where there is now a parking lot next to the theater, a mixed-use building would be constructed. That building would have two levels of underground parking, 4,800 square feet of retail space on the ground floor and 37 housing units, including a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom residences.

(Click here to read the whole article.)
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Many thanks to Terry Monohan from San Francisco, CA for passing along the link!

Many Thanks to THS Volunteers!

As we close out 2013′s National Volunteer Week, we just wanted to tip our hat to all the generous individuals who dedicated their time to THS in the past year:

Steve Baltic
Vincent S. Castro
Gediminas Indreika
Darryl Jorden
Erin Kennealy
Blake Kennedy
Stephen Klabish
Perry Lammers
Dave Neutz
William Reynolds
Konrad Schiecke
Robert E Sheldon
Dan Smaczny
Cheryl Turner
Brian Wolf

Thank you so much!