The Palace Theatre

The Palace Theatre was a 1926 vaudeville house with an interior designed with inspiration from the Palais de Versailles in France.  In 2018 a $6 million dollar renovation (which included a new roof, high efficiency heating and some work on the auditorium) was completed by CAPA – the Columbus Association for the Performing Arts.

Unlike today’s theaters and multiplexes, this (and the others as well) building takes you back in time as soon as you walk through the front doors.  You proceed up the steps into the lobby with all of it’s carpeting and doors to the different seating levels until you find your way to the magnificent auditorium.

The inside itself is grand in both scale and design.  Walking up the steps from the stage floor is a bit of a workout and some I spoke to while at the very top mentioned one could get a touch of vertigo up in the high seats.  One person even commented that the theater reminded them of the scene from the original 1933 King Kong movie where Kong was chained on stage before breaking free.  I could see that…

Looking down at the stage from on high.  I think every theatre from this age had a central opulent chandelier as a requirement for construction.

Looking up from the stage

The chandeliers throughout the building are works of art as well along with all the other details you can see while exploring the inside of the theatre.

I’m not sure if this is something they do once a year (have a free walking tour of the theatres) or not but I am so happy I found out about it.  Those who attended were able to see almost every part of the theatres from dressing rooms to on stage and the workings that are behind the stage.

Signs of prior shows and their performers.

For a moment being on the stage I felt like I could break into a Broadway song and dance routine… something from 42nd street came to mind.  Do you have historic theatres like this, or older, where you live?

Teri  📷

Next: The Southern Theatre