Stanley Theatre

Yesterday, I attended services and stayed behind for the grand tour. The theatre has been restored beautifully. The theater’s doors are made of gleaming copper and were stripped of layers of paint and hand polished by volunteers off premisis. Over 5000 dedicated volunteers restored this theatre to its former glory. One of the first electric chandeliers in the country, which originally hung in the grand lobby of the first Waldorf Astoria, now shimmers with over 100 light bulbs in the lobby. There are three fountains in the theatre (two in use) and an original hand woven tapestry in the basement lounge. The downstairs Ladies room has 44 stalls. There are also six live in maintenance workers who keep rent free apartments in the new wing that was recently added. Although the original colors have been toned down, (including the atmospheric ceiling of the auditorium) the brothers and sisters of different congregations have done a wonderful job turning this movie palace into a divine house of worship.

A big thanks to the Witnesses for saving this masterpiece, and for the thoughtful and respectful way they share it!!!

Thanks

CORRECTION: the number(201) 659-1892 is now the number of a private residence.

According to a Tour Brochure I was given, Tour times are: Weekdays: 8:30AM to 5:PM (the last tour begins at 4:PM); Saturdays and Sundays: same, but tours are given only if no assembly is in session on those days. Tours last approx. one hour and include a 15-min. slide presentation of the history of the facility and the great effort undertaken in restoring and adapting it. No religious information is presented. Parking is available at reasonable cost across the street at the Kinney Parking Garage. It is best to confirm this schedule by phoning the Hall at: (201) 659-1892

Note that one can enter during any Assembly session when there are no tours, but no darkening of the ‘sky’ and appearance of the ‘stars and clouds’ will be made, and no film/slide show will be offered. Admission is always free of charge. Tour brochures with full color photos as well as color post card scenes are available by calling, or writing to the Hall at: 2932 Kennedy Blvd., Jersey City, NJ 07306.

Warren writes in his Sept. 24th post on the VALENCIA theatre’s page: “The Stanley Theatre in Jersey City, NJ, now a Jehovah’s Witnesses church, still has cloud machines. I don’t know if they’re used during services, but they are operated during public tours of the building. Visitors are shown a short film in the darkened auditorium.” Just to clarify for those not familiar: The STANLEY in Jersey City is now an Assembly Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses, and they do give free daily tours at which color postcards of the venue are available, but, no, they do not use the darkened auditorium with the cloud machines during their “services” which are instructional meetings needing bright light to read the Bible. At those times (usually on weekends) they turn on the many metal halide up-lights hidden in the area behind the building facades along the walls of the auditorium. These thousands of watts of light then reflect downward off of the now off-white painted ceiling. They have preserved much of the theatre’s original decor.

Re Jean’s comment: The Witnesses did paint over the original murals which depicted what are to them, pagan scenes not in harmony with Biblical precepts, and since the building is now a place of worship of God and not the silent screen, that was to be expected. True, it may have been better had they merely painted onto boards mounted on hinges in front of the original murals so as to be able to swing the new scenes aside to show the originals to visitors, but in view of all the many other restorations seen inside the building, they are a relatively small loss (and they can be seen in photos). The replacement murals depict famous scenes from the Bible. The Witnesses did “not choose to tear it down” because they bought the long vacant theatre specifically for its features that would lend to its use as an Assembly Hall; to build a new building with that space and seating would have cost many millions more than the largely volunteer rehabilitation that this place received! They have restored/adapted a number of theatres across the country.

Im am glad everyone likes the theatre. I volunteer as a tour guide, and many people are suprised at the fact that we do not “preach” during the tour. The function of the theatre now is for worship, but we respect the fact that people come for a tour, and that is all they recieve, unless a question is made about our faith after the tour. We have a new dvd presentation within the tour tat shows the work dont to the building and before and after photots of the restoration. The womans restroom actually has 45 stalls, and the hanging grand crystal chandalier is one of the oldest and first electric chandaliers in the world, created in 1893. If youve never been to the theatre by all means make plans to!

I drove by here last summer and the brass on the marquee is so shiney the glare can be seen 2 blocks away.

I toured this theater several years ago and it is a gem! The tour guide told stories of volunteers who scrubbed the brass marquee with toothbrushes. The Jehovah’s Witnesses did make a couple of changes to the theater’s decor. Murals of Biblical scenes replaced ones that depicted Greek Mythology. The former orchestra pit is now a baptism pool.