Newport Music Hall
1722 N. High Street,
Columbus,
OH
43201
1722 N. High Street,
Columbus,
OH
43201
2 people
favorited this theater
Showing 1 - 25 of 27 comments
Cyclopsga, Apparently I was asleep back when you posted about being on the spotlight during the opening night of Superstar at the Agora. This was only 5 years ago, so sorry for the delay in getting back to you. Can you post any details as to the date the show opened? Do you remember how many nights we ran, before it was shut down? Do you by chance have any literature from the pre- production advertising? I’d pay for anything you might have to be sent to me, unless you want to just scan and email. I’m open to anything you might be willing to do. Thanks in advance,
Roy
GRAND BOUFFE played at the World Theatre,further north on High Street from State/Agora/Newport Music Hall in March of 1974. Earl Wilson called it the “most revolting, stomach-turning picture I’ve ever seen. It stars Marcello Mastroianni in an eating orgy with four men determined to glutton themselves to death.”
Wasn’t this theater still in operation (as a movie theater) in early 1974? I could swear I passed them and they were showing Marco Ferreri’s wonderfully scandalous “The Grand Bouffe” at the time. As a high school sophomore taking a “walking tour” of Ohio State with the Latin Club, I was sooooo impressed.
buckeyebanger – could you tell me what year this Agora photo is from? Hall and Oates played there in 72 or 73…but they were billed as “whole oats” at that time. Thanks!
Androy – I worked a Super Trooper spotlight during the opening night of JC Superstar at the Agora – the whole crew were speeding our little brains out as I recall, lack of sleep. Jimmy Lynch (Tristram Shandy)joined their band and toured with them for a while, I believe. Movietime – the organ pipes were there in ‘71, I climbed around in the pipe chambers.
It would be nice if someone posted details and pictures from the opening and early years of the theater. I have the original Moller theater organ console from the state installed in 1921 opes 3160. Maybe someone knows what happened to the pipe work from this instrument.
Website: http://www.promowestlive.com/concert_venues/newport-music-hall-columbus-ohio
I worked in the club starting fall of 1975. I remember Quality Crews would work the national acts. Around 1978 the place changed hands. Factory Productions started providing the PA.
Working security for Agora Productions was fun for five years, indoors and when we had summertime rock concerts in towns like Steubbenville or the Aquapark near Dayton. Being on stage and walking through the crowd subjected me to billowing “walls” of marijuana…couldn’t help but “catch a buzz” just being in the area…and I didn’t smoke!!
The production was deemed illegal as it was not sanctioned by who ever owned the rights to it. Apparently money was to be paid to use the name. My memory of this is very sketchy and is why I am looking for any input.I just remember we were shut down before completing all scheduled performances. And, it was a blast doing it, my memory is at least clear on that. Thanks everyone for comments so far.
JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR was first a recording released in 1970. It was incredibly popular when it came out and, because the album was so theatrical, there were many groups that just put on productions of it without any permission from the creators. It was some time later that the official versions started to appear. Androy51, your production was most likely in 1971.
The Dispatch is still publishing. (The Citizen-Journal is not.) You may also want to look at the OSU Lantern.
Why was your production “illegal” ?
I was involved with a (illegal)production of Jesus Christ Superstar at the Agora in 1969 or 1970 as I recall. If anyone has details about the production they can share, please do. I will be searching archives in the Columbus Dispatch if that newspaper is still going.
Gotta admit that a “most embarrassing moment” was before opening the front doors for the QUEEN show…people pressing against the doors. I went out the back, circled, found some guy in a suit pushing and shoving his way to the front of the crowd. I snatched him up by pants and collar, hauled him to the curb, “Who do ytou think you are pal?” “…I’m the Fire Marshall.” Ooops! Had about “ten seconds” to clear and organize the crowd or no show.
My newspaper was “Street Sheet—a positive viewspaper” and it’s office were above Street Scene. Later we converted into an artist co-signment shop and something called “Rag Works” in which we sold “hip” cothing styles. The Agora was our home, Gary put in basketball nets for the crew for slow days between shows. I basically ran “security” and hired Buckeye defensive linemen and linebackers to help out with some shows.
It’s funny that Dave posted that marquee shot. In the early days of THE AGORA, Gary Proctor “Bozo” and Freakie Steve ran the stage with Gary calling a lot of the shots preparing The Agora for Hank. Jimmy Marshall was told to put up the marquee…and had first put up “Hauling Oates.” He had not heard of the duo’s band and was wondering why Gary said to put up “Hauling Oates.” We changed the sign…as readers may notice.
The marquee now says newport music hall in the middle. It used to be all black. I always thought they should have something saying the name of the place on the marquee. That little newport neon sign above the doors was not cuttin' it.
I attend many rock concerts at this venue and have wondered what the theatre’s past lives have been. You can see vestiges of grander times in terms of the marble staircases in the lobby, the painted-over ceiling medallion which once complemented a now-vanished chandelier. There are some decorative elements still semi-intact the higher you look on the walls.
There is a large balcony, which is opened to concert-goers for the well-attended shows.
The place has been renovated in the past few years – the HVAC is much-updated, but the character and permanent finishes remain intact. You can still feel the core character of the theatre, which seems to love its patrons whoever they may be.
The State and other OSU-area movie theatres are described on this page: University District History: 100 Years of University District Theatres
This Chicago Sun-Times travel article says “Built in 1923, the Newport Music Hall is the longest continually running rock venue in the country” … which is a strange-sounding way to put it!
I haven’t gotten that far in my research yet, but I do have a note that it became the Agora approximately April 1970. It was taken over by Henry & Joe LoConti, who invested $200,000 in the project.
I should have more exact data by the end of the summer.
Rocklord, do you happen to know when it closed as the State movie theatre and when it reopened as the Agora concert hall? (And, for that matter, when the name changed from Agora to Newport?)
A group of us know just about everything to know about The Agora since we helped redo it for concerts, ran the stage, security, lights, sound, offices, and field shows for years. Know the bands, the roadies, the girls, the music…and writing a major book for 2010 expecting to go to film in the next full year of 2011. My offices were above Street Scene (next to the entrance of Agora) and we had the interior painted scarlet and gray for obvious reasons. (Go Buckeyes!!)
We had a basic band room on one side of the stage and put in a spiral staircase for a little room above the stage on the other. Also added the stage area restroom for bands and security guards (aka “bouncers” in the era of such). Over the front was the “busines office.” We had QUEEN’s first show, where they paid RUSH to not play—–(afraid of being upstaged.)
This still functioned as a movie theater in the 1960s. Unsure exactly when it changed to a rock venue. The early 70’s maybe. It’s too bad as it looks like it was a nice theater at one time. I imagine it’s seen better days after 30 plus years of rock music….
The Newport does have a balcony, stairs in the large foyer go up to a long hallway that overlooks the foyer and leads to the restrooms. The balcony wraps around ¾ of the building, which is great for live concerts.