The theatre itself has a Facebook page with some recent interior photos at:
https://www.facebook.com/grandwarner
The Facebook page has a lot more recent news and postings. Unfortunately the Trust’s webpage doesn’t have much recent news – the trust was formed in 2008 according to their webpage. From the photos at the Facebook site, the interior looks in excellent shape and is quite ornate – looks like it’s the original color scheme!
The building at 45 Milbury St looks like it could have been the front part of a theatre at one time, but this street is right next to the interstate. The building here may have been a front retail section with an auditorium behind it sitting where the Interstate is now.
According to their website (Sept. 2014) they are now in the middle of a fundraising effort for the “Palladium Restoration Project” which will fund the restoration of architectural details along with equipping the theatre with state of the art equipment. They are striving to raise $1,000,000 by the end of 2014; people may make donations through a Paypal link on their page (listed at the top of this page). Let’s hope they are successful – the architecture will be wonderful when fully restored. Good news is that it appears the tax issue isn’t a problem anymore – they seem very positive about the future and their events calendar is very busy.
Looking at the new photo gallery at their official website (http://crossroadspresents.com/orpheum-theatre/photos), it looks like at the least, the auditorium has been completely repainted and the seats re-upholstered. It looks quite nice in there.
The renovation is already underway – from the photos in the link above, they are already working on the walls, seats and carpet are removed, everything’s well underway. The article describes the work as a $13,000,000 renovation which is expected to take about a year to complete. The new owner is Tiptina’s owner Roland von Kurnakowski who purchased it in February 2014. When it reopens, the Orpheum will not only host the Philharmonic Symphony, but will also have other concerts, movie showings and special events. The formerly unused basement will also be renovated and put to use.
The above article (Forbes) has some nice interior photos both pre and post renovation. Nicely restored. It’s all white inside, but from some of the photos it appears that has been the color scheme for many years.
The Theatre has been bought by Gregor Fox who plans to renovate both the interior and exterior and return the building to commercial use – and “contribute to the arts community”
The San Francisco Orpheum that Gill refers to in the March 2 email, is the earlier Orheum (built 1887, 2,200 seats) which was destroyed in the 1906 earthquake. It is picture number 30 in that big set – left hand size at the bottom.
Their new official webpage has a couple good auditorium photos (one alternates with an exterior one at the top) – at http://www.mcmenamins.com/467-bagdad-theater-pub-history
From the current google street view, it looks like they’ve brouight the building back into use – probably as storage – at least it isn’t all bricked up anymore
First screen space is now called Theatre 1, (www.theatre1boston.com) and seats 208; very nicely renovated as a cinema, which is available for rental for screenings and meetings. They also have a once-a-month movie/dinner night “Reel Chefs” involving a classic movie and gourmet dinners.
Second screen space is now called “Space 57” (www.space57.com) and is available for rental as a flexible event room which can accommodate up to 900 patrons. This is also very nicely renovated, in a light hued well lit manner.
Their floor plan (http://space57.com/floorplans/) shows the layout for both screens. Interesting to see the overall layout. – it looks like you entered from the street and the two cinemas stretched off to the left and right of the lobby – the screens are 180 degrees opposed. Interesting layout. The building is associated with the Revere Hotel Boston Common which appears to be connected.
It’s great to see the entire facility is now renovated and open!
They must have fixed that pretty quickly. I went in 1985, the year it opened, and everything looked fine. You could tell if an IMAX movie was showing as the lowest part of the screen would be dark, but this was only about 15% of the screen area. It appeared the features (mostly documentaries) were primarily IMAX, but all films would start with a travelogue of the Boston area which was definitely OMNIMAX – it covered 99% of the screen. It’s quite an experience and I like the presentation better in OMNIMAX than in IMAX. I always wondered why OMNIMAX didn’t replace IMAX because it’s much better.
The auditorium was located on the second floor. Plain decor, but in good condition. They offered first-run films at least through 1999. The current Google Street View shows a movie ad on their marquee. Could it have opened up again? I can’t imaging Google Street View still having a 2007 photo up.
A lot of nice photos, virtual tours and videos at the Saenger’s new official website (http://www.saengernola.com/).
The unofficial website (http://www.saengeramusements.com/theatres/nawlins/saenger/newosaeng.htm) has a lot of good historical photos and architectural renderings. Also links to pages about other Saenger-owned theatres.
The website for the Grand Warner Trust is:
http://grandwarnertheatretrust.org/
The theatre itself has a Facebook page with some recent interior photos at:
https://www.facebook.com/grandwarner
The Facebook page has a lot more recent news and postings. Unfortunately the Trust’s webpage doesn’t have much recent news – the trust was formed in 2008 according to their webpage. From the photos at the Facebook site, the interior looks in excellent shape and is quite ornate – looks like it’s the original color scheme!
Direct Link to the Avalon Theatre webpage:
http://www.timescinema.com/avalon-theater.html
According to this May 2014 article, the renovation is well underway, with reopening planned for August:
http://www.jsonline.com/business/a-star-is-reborn-restoration-of-landmark-avalon-theater-in-full-swing-b99278646z1-260962901.html
Their official webpage is http://www.kingstheatre.com/
Their facebook page is https://www.facebook.com/KingsTheatreBklyn
The facebook page has a lot of restoration news and photos.
The building at 45 Milbury St looks like it could have been the front part of a theatre at one time, but this street is right next to the interstate. The building here may have been a front retail section with an auditorium behind it sitting where the Interstate is now.
According to their website (Sept. 2014) they are now in the middle of a fundraising effort for the “Palladium Restoration Project” which will fund the restoration of architectural details along with equipping the theatre with state of the art equipment. They are striving to raise $1,000,000 by the end of 2014; people may make donations through a Paypal link on their page (listed at the top of this page). Let’s hope they are successful – the architecture will be wonderful when fully restored. Good news is that it appears the tax issue isn’t a problem anymore – they seem very positive about the future and their events calendar is very busy.
Looking at the new photo gallery at their official website (http://crossroadspresents.com/orpheum-theatre/photos), it looks like at the least, the auditorium has been completely repainted and the seats re-upholstered. It looks quite nice in there.
The renovation is already underway – from the photos in the link above, they are already working on the walls, seats and carpet are removed, everything’s well underway. The article describes the work as a $13,000,000 renovation which is expected to take about a year to complete. The new owner is Tiptina’s owner Roland von Kurnakowski who purchased it in February 2014. When it reopens, the Orpheum will not only host the Philharmonic Symphony, but will also have other concerts, movie showings and special events. The formerly unused basement will also be renovated and put to use.
New article about the Orpheum renovations, including a slide show of 2014 interior pictures:
http://www.nola.com/business/index.ssf/2014/07/orpheum_theater_renovation.html
Another detailed article about the restoration, with a lot of interior photos:
http://www.nola.com/business/index.ssf/2014/08/loews_state_palace_developer_c.html
The above article (Forbes) has some nice interior photos both pre and post renovation. Nicely restored. It’s all white inside, but from some of the photos it appears that has been the color scheme for many years.
Latest news on the State Theatre:
http://www.neworleansdowntown.com/news/detail/56742/LOEWS-STATE-PALACE-THEATRE
The Theatre has been bought by Gregor Fox who plans to renovate both the interior and exterior and return the building to commercial use – and “contribute to the arts community”
They have an official website up at: http://www.everettsquaretheatre.com/.
No recent updates though – not sure what their current status is, but the front façade, new marquee and restored foyer all look great.
The San Francisco Orpheum that Gill refers to in the March 2 email, is the earlier Orheum (built 1887, 2,200 seats) which was destroyed in the 1906 earthquake. It is picture number 30 in that big set – left hand size at the bottom.
Broadway.com reports that the 4D project has been cancelled due to financing problems.
Don’t know how much (if any) of the renovations had actually taken place.
http://www.broadway.com/buzz/176117/exclusive-broadway-4d-cancels-planned-times-square-attraction-featuring-filmed-broadway-performances/
The link for Howard Haas’s photo of the Circle Theatre interior has been moved. Here is the link for the blog posting:
http://www.historictheatres.org/philadelphias-circle-theatres-atmospheric-auditorium-seen-again/.
Here is a link directly to the photo: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150225757800818&set=a.10150225757795818.339858.51659460817&type=1
Their new official webpage has a couple good auditorium photos (one alternates with an exterior one at the top) – at http://www.mcmenamins.com/467-bagdad-theater-pub-history
From the current google street view, it looks like they’ve brouight the building back into use – probably as storage – at least it isn’t all bricked up anymore
Note new website addresses above.
First screen space is now called Theatre 1, (www.theatre1boston.com) and seats 208; very nicely renovated as a cinema, which is available for rental for screenings and meetings. They also have a once-a-month movie/dinner night “Reel Chefs” involving a classic movie and gourmet dinners.
Second screen space is now called “Space 57” (www.space57.com) and is available for rental as a flexible event room which can accommodate up to 900 patrons. This is also very nicely renovated, in a light hued well lit manner.
Their floor plan (http://space57.com/floorplans/) shows the layout for both screens. Interesting to see the overall layout. – it looks like you entered from the street and the two cinemas stretched off to the left and right of the lobby – the screens are 180 degrees opposed. Interesting layout. The building is associated with the Revere Hotel Boston Common which appears to be connected.
It’s great to see the entire facility is now renovated and open!
They must have fixed that pretty quickly. I went in 1985, the year it opened, and everything looked fine. You could tell if an IMAX movie was showing as the lowest part of the screen would be dark, but this was only about 15% of the screen area. It appeared the features (mostly documentaries) were primarily IMAX, but all films would start with a travelogue of the Boston area which was definitely OMNIMAX – it covered 99% of the screen. It’s quite an experience and I like the presentation better in OMNIMAX than in IMAX. I always wondered why OMNIMAX didn’t replace IMAX because it’s much better.
The auditorium was located on the second floor. Plain decor, but in good condition. They offered first-run films at least through 1999. The current Google Street View shows a movie ad on their marquee. Could it have opened up again? I can’t imaging Google Street View still having a 2007 photo up.
A lot of nice photos, virtual tours and videos at the Saenger’s new official website (http://www.saengernola.com/).
The unofficial website (http://www.saengeramusements.com/theatres/nawlins/saenger/newosaeng.htm) has a lot of good historical photos and architectural renderings. Also links to pages about other Saenger-owned theatres.
Just put up a bunch (127!) of photos from my visit to the Fox last July. Most of these are interior shots – this is quite the place!
Exit door from the auditorium.
Exit Vestibule – main lobby to the left; to the right the big arch visible on south side of the building.