Victoria Theatre (Dayton, Ohio)
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The Victoria Theatre is a historic 1,154-seat performing arts venue located in downtown Dayton, Ohio, USA.[1][2]
History
The Victoria Theatre, one of the oldest continually-operated theaters on the continent, was opened to the public as the Turner Opera House on New Year's Day, 1866, at a cost of $225,000.[3] It's initial offering was the James Sheridan Knowles drama "Virginius, starring Edwin Forrest -- a play strongly associated with the famous actor[4]. According to press clippings of that era, the theater was referred to as "the best [sic] theater west of Philadelphia". General admission was $1. The best seats in the house were between $10 and $12 dollars. [5]. The theater's presence in Dayton even inspired the publishing of a musical march by Edward Spoth entitled "Turner's Opera House March".
Tragically, arson was suspected of having caused an all-consuming fire May 16th of 1869, which destroyed the theater at a loss of $500,000, of which insurance covered only $128,000.[6]
In 1871, the edifice was re-opened -- its rebuilding based, in part, on a portion of the surviving facade, although built to three stories instead of six. The opera house resumed operations as "The Music Hall". It in 1885 it became "The Grand Opera House". On September 18th, 1899 it became the "Victoria Opera House", and in 1903, it became the Victoria Theater [7], two years after the death of Queen Victoria of England.
Damage befell The Victoria during the catastrophic Great Dayton Flood of 1913 which severely damaged the Dayton region along with the ground floor of the theater. The theater's interior was rebuilt and remodeled. But in 1917, fire struck again and gutted portions of the building. Reconstruction was delayed due to material shortages during World War I. The Victoria saw extensive interior remodeling and in 1919 re-opened as the Victory Theater -- a name commemorating the American war effort and its result. For decades the theater thrived and was widely known across Montgomery County, Ohio and the Midwest. [8] It was frequently visited by road companies of American touring theater, including those of The Marx Brothers, Helen Hayes, and even Harry Houdini.
By the late 60's, Dayton's changing business patterns Downtown and the proliferation of freeways and suburban shopping malls threatened the Victory Theater's existence, and in 1975 it was slated for demolition, in favor of a proposed parking lot. A public outcry for the theater's preservation that year helped to earn the building its listing in the National Register of Historic Places and, thus, it escaped demolition. However, portions of the building were in poor or fading condition. All the while it continued to be visited extensively by traveling theater companies. Twyla Tharp - the famed choreographer - used the Victory as a try-out venue for various productions before taking the material to the East Coast. A popular vintage film series drew patrons during the summertime and featured pipe organ house music and silent film accompaniment, thanks to the acquisition of an NCR-donated Estay pipe organ.
The theatre had a network of access tunnels stretching out beneath the city's streets for several blocks. It was said that, during Vaudeville times, the tunnels allowed circus animals to be unloaded from railroad cars blocks away from the theatre, and held underground until showtime. As late as 1979, much of the tunnel network was accessible to employees, although some sections were blocked off by city steam pipes. The stage also bore remnants of its original gas footlights.[9]
Throughout the 1970s, the theater was operated as "The Victory Theater". It staged legitimate theatrical shows, rock concerts and movies. The theatre was also home to the nationally-known Dayton Ballet Company. A mainstay through the period was its screening of "Midnight Movies", offered by a local independent producer, on Friday and Saturday nights that drew a, largely, teen audience for films with counter-cultural themes.[10]
During revitalization efforts in the late 1970s, stage manager, Gary Kuzkin, overhauled much of the stage's technical capabilities. Crews from the Stagehands Union (IATSE) local restored much of the theatre's ancient hemp-and-sandbag fly galley, replacing several hundred thousand of feet of rope—along with miles of electrical wiring.
In 1978, the theatre was greatly benefitted by the donation of a cache of equipment and stage draperies from National Cash Register's (NCR) auditorium, which had been slated for demolition. NCR also donated its historic five-rank Estay pipe organ to the Victory, which was renovated and installed by aficionados.
The 1989 rebuilding of the theater was extensive. It involved razing the interior commercial space within the forward, Main Street-facing section of the building as well as the stage house, while carefully preserving and restoring the 1866-71 facade and the 1919 auditorium. At the same time, the interior auditorium portion of the structure was completely renovated. All of the commercial space at street level was reclaimed for a grand, new lobby. The result was an extensively-new Victoria Theatre (as it was now so re-named) designed expressly for the performing arts. The auditorium retained its original appearance with completely restored plaster work, drapery, marble work, gilding, and fresco detailing. Additionally, the house received state-of-the-art upgrading to its wiring, lighting, and sound systems and now accommodated infrared sound transmitters for headphone use.
The current theater accommodates 1,154, with 635 seats in the orchestra, and 519 in the balcony. The proscenium measures 37'7" wide by 29'0" high by 39'3" deep. A full-sized orchestra pit lies just below the stage lip. Ten dressing rooms, accommodating up to 18 people, are off-stage left, in the basement and at stage level.
In 2003 the opening of the Benjamin and Marian Schuster Performing Arts Center saw the relocation of the Dayton Opera to newly opened Benjamin and Marian Schuster Performing Arts Center which affected its sales and clientele.[11] Nevertheless, The Victoria Theatre remains a nationally-known and successful component of a cooperative venture among itself, The Schuster Center, and the Metropolitan Arts Center which is a renovated former department store building next to the Victoria Theatre. This trio of performing arts venues now constitutes a theater, fine arts, and performing arts district in Downtown Dayton.
Theatre information
The Victoria Theatre presents traveling broadway shows, concerts, and other theatrical productions such as The Phantom of the Opera. The most renowned productions appear via the Chase Broadway Series.
The Victoria Theatre Association is the company which owns and operates the Victoria Theatre and the Schuster Center. In addition to the Chase Broadway Series, Victoria Theatre Association also presents the Young at Heart Family Series, the Michelob Ultra Cool Films series, the Universal 1 Variety Series, Star Attractions, and the Physicians for Kids Discovery Series, which features curriculum-enhanced live theatre productions for school children. Victoria Theatre Association is also in alliance with the Dayton Opera Association.[12]
See also
References
- ^ "Theatre Technical Information" (PDF). Retrieved 2009-06-18. [dead link]
- ^ "TECHNICAL SUMMARY" (PDF). Retrieved 2011-02-18.
- ^ Walters, Jeanne D. "Transition Again" Dayton: Dayton USA Magazine, October 1976: 32
- ^ http://www.josephhaworth.com/edwin_forrest.htm
- ^ Zumwald, Teresa "For the Love of Dayton" Dayton: Dayton Daily News, 1996: 56
- ^ Zumwald, Teresa "For the Love of Dayton" Dayton: Dayton Daily News, 1996: 58
- ^ Dalton, Curt "When Dayton Went to the Movies" Dayton: Curt Dalton, 1999: 75
- ^ "Theatre History". Retrieved 2009-06-18.
- ^ "Theatre Tunnel Systems". Retrieved 2009-06-18.
- ^ "History Theatrical Shows". Retrieved 2009-06-18.
- ^ "Schuster Center affects ticket sales". Retrieved 2009-06-18.
- ^ "Performance Series". Retrieved 2009-06-18.