Mainstreet Theater facts for kids
Mainstreet Theater in the Power & Light District
|
|
| Former names | RKO Missouri Empire Theater |
|---|---|
| Location | 1400 Main Street Kansas City, Missouri |
| Coordinates | 39°05′50″N 94°35′01″W / 39.0971°N 94.5836°W |
| Owner | The Cordish Companies |
| Operator | B&B Theatres |
| Type | Movie theater |
| Capacity | 3,200 originally |
| Construction | |
| Opened | October 30, 1921 Reopened May 1, 2009 |
| Renovated | 1967, 1980, 2008, 2021 |
| Reopened | 2021 |
| Website | |
| www.bbtheatres.com | |
The Mainstreet Theater, also known as The Empire Theater, is a very old and important theater in downtown Kansas City, Missouri. It's located in the lively Power & Light District. This theater is so special that it was made a historic landmark in February 2007, meaning it's protected because of its history.
Contents
A Look Back: The Mainstreet Theater's Story
How It All Began: Early Days
The Mainstreet Theater first opened its doors on October 30, 1921. It was designed by a famous architecture team called Rapp & Rapp. This huge theater was about 90,000 square feet and could seat 3,200 people!
It was a very popular place for both vaudeville shows (live performances with different acts) and movies. The inside of the theater looked like a fancy French palace, and the outside mixed old styles like Neoclassical and French Second Empire. The main lobby even had a cool dome ceiling with round windows. The Mainstreet Theater was the biggest theater in Kansas City until the Midland Theatre opened a few years later in 1927.
The Mainstreet was also the first theater in Kansas City to have a special nursery for kids! Parents could watch a show while their children played with toys and games, or even slept in cribs, all supervised by a trained nurse.
There was even a secret tunnel connecting the theater's lower level to the nearby President Hotel. This tunnel was built so actors could easily get from their dressing rooms to the stage.
One of the most amazing things about the theater was its basement. It had special areas to keep animals for the vaudeville shows! This included an elephant cage, a pool for seals, and a huge elevator strong enough to lift elephants right onto the stage. Many famous performers, like Cab Calloway and the Marx Brothers, performed here. In its early days, over 4,000 people visited the theater every single day!
In April 1941, the theater's name changed to the RKO Missouri Theater.
|
Mainstreet Theatre
|
|
The Mainstreet Theater when it first opened, before its name changed and the big sign was taken down.
|
|
 Location in Missouri
Location in the United States
|
|
| Location | 1400 Main St., Kansas City, Missouri |
|---|---|
| Area | Less than one acre |
| Built | 1921 |
| Built by | Thompson-Starrett Construction Co. |
| Architect | C.W. Rapp and Geo. L. Rapp |
| Architectural style | Beaux Arts |
| NRHP reference No. | 07000043 |
| Added to NRHP | February 15, 2007 |
The AMC Years: New Names and Changes
AMC Theatres bought the theater in the late 1950s and reopened it in December 1960. They changed its name to "The Empire." The first movie shown under the new name was Exodus. The theater was updated with new technology, and the seating was reduced to 1,260 seats.
The Empire theater had a giant movie screen, about 70 feet wide and 30 feet tall. This screen could even fold up and be stored away quickly for live stage shows. The stage curtain was also huge, measuring over 120 feet! To celebrate Kansas City's nickname, "City of Fountains," the Empire even had decorative fountains inside the theater.
In 1967, the theater was split into two separate movie screens. Later, in 1980, AMC changed it again, turning it into four smaller theaters called Empire 4 Theaters. The Empire stopped showing movies and closed its doors in 1985.
In 1972, a group called the Italian American Unification Council in Kansas City wanted to make a point about how Italian Americans were shown in movies. They bought every single ticket for the first showing of the movie The Godfather at the Empire. The movie played to an empty theater while the group held a benefit dance nearby.
A Time of Worry: The Theater at Risk
After closing in 1985, the Empire Theater was in danger of being torn down many times. People tried hard to save it. In 1986, even the famous actor George Burns wrote a letter to help get the theater recognized as a historic landmark.
The building fell into very bad shape. Bricks started falling off, and trees even began to grow from the roof! The city eventually stepped in to buy the theater in 2004 to protect it.
Bringing It Back to Life: Redevelopment
Before the theater could be reopened, a lot of work was needed. There was a big cleanup to remove old materials and debris from the building. It took about 200 dump-truck loads to clear everything out!
The company developing the Power & Light District, Cordish, teamed up with AMC to fix up both the Empire Theater and the nearby Midland Theatre.
Grand Reopening: A New Era
The AMC Mainstreet Theater officially reopened to the public on May 1, 2009, going back to its original name. It was a big part of the new Power & Light District. AMC spent $30 million to make it their "flagship theater," meaning their most important and best theater.
The newly renovated theater has three regular movie rooms on the ground floor. Upstairs, there are special "cinema suites" with comfy reclining chairs, food trays, and a button to call a server. All the movie rooms have super clear 4k digital projectors and amazing 11-channel sound systems, with speakers above you and bass shakers under the seats! AMC says it's one of the most high-tech theaters in the world.
The lobby area also has a restaurant called The Marquee, which opened in March 2009. In May 2009, the theater received an award for its excellent preservation work from the Historic Kansas City Foundation.
New Owners: The Latest Chapter
On June 4, 2012, it was announced that Alamo Drafthouse Cinema would take over running the theater. They started selling tickets soon after.
However, in March 2021, the Kansas City Alamo Drafthouse announced they would close permanently because of the COVID-19 pandemic. But just a month later, in April 2021, B&B Theatres bought the Mainstreet Theater. It reopened its doors at the end of September 2021, continuing its long and interesting history!
