Powers Auditorium
Warner Theater | |
Rapp & Rapp; Heller Bros. | |
NRHP reference No. | 80003152[1] |
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Added to NRHP | May 31, 1980 |
Powers Auditorium, in Youngstown, Ohio is one of the largest auditoriums in the Youngstown-Warren area. The facility is the main venue of downtown Youngstown's DeYor Performing Arts Center. The complex also includes the Adler Art Academy, Beecher Flad Pavilion, and Ford Family Recital Hall. Originally built in 1931 as the Warner Theatre, the former movie palace was renovated and reopened as Powers Auditorium in 1969.
The main tenant of Powers Auditorium is the Youngstown Symphony, which performs from October through May. The facility also hosts other musical acts, touring Broadway productions, and locally produced theater (primarily from Ballet Western Reserve and Easy Street Productions, two Youngstown-based theater companies).
History
Designed by the prominent theater architects
Post-renovation
Powers Auditorium can hold a capacity crowd of 2,303. An impressive remnant of the golden age of cinema, the former movie theater is included on the National Register of Historic Places. In recent years, the structure's Art Deco facade was restored to its original appearance. Meanwhile, the building continues to be expanded.
In 2000, a new East Wing was completed, giving the Symphony a music library and administrative office, as well as an elevator and equipment that brought Powers up to standard in handicap accessibility. Recently completed is the Beecher Flad Pavilion, which comprises the Ford Recital Hall, a 600-seat auditorium for orchestra, brass, and choral performances; new kitchen facilities; new dressing rooms; expanded loading docks; and soundproofing so that Powers and the new auditorium can be used simultaneously.
See also
References
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
- ^ "A Sam Warner Memorial – Brothers Will Build a $1,000,000 Movie Theatre in Youngstown". The New York Times. March 19, 1930. p. 31.