Powers Auditorium facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
|
|
Warner Theater
|
|
Federal Plaza façade
|
|
 Location in Ohio
Location in the United States
|
|
| Location | 260 West Federal Plaza, Youngstown, Ohio |
|---|---|
| Area | less than one acre |
| Built | 1930 |
| Architect | Rapp & Rapp; Heller Bros. |
| NRHP reference No. | 80003152 |
| Added to NRHP | May 31, 1980 |
Powers Auditorium in Youngstown, Ohio, is a large and important building for performances. It is a main part of the DeYor Performing Arts Center in downtown Youngstown. This center also has other cool places like the Adler Art Academy and the Ford Family Recital Hall. Powers Auditorium was first built in 1931 as the Warner Theatre. It used to be a big movie palace! It was later updated and reopened as Powers Auditorium in 1969.
The main group that performs at Powers Auditorium is the Youngstown Symphony. They play music there from October through May each year. The building also hosts other musical shows and touring Broadway plays. Local theater groups, like Ballet Western Reserve and Easy Street Productions, also perform there.
History of Powers Auditorium
Powers Auditorium was designed by famous theater architects named Rapp and Rapp. It first opened on May 14, 1931, as the Warner Theatre. This theater was part of a huge chain of theaters owned by the Warner Brothers film company.
The building was created to honor Sam Warner. He was one of the Warner brothers who lived in Youngstown before starting his film career. The Warner Theatre showed movies until 1968. At that time, it was planned to be torn down to make a parking lot.
But people in the community spoke up and wanted to save the theater. The Edward W. Powers family then gave $250,000 to help save the building. The theater was saved and updated in 1969. Many items inside the theater were sold, and the main hall was changed to sound better for concerts. In September 1969, the building was renamed Powers Auditorium. The Youngstown Symphony performed there for its grand reopening.
Powers Auditorium Today
Powers Auditorium can hold a large audience of 2,303 people. It is a wonderful reminder of the old days of cinema. This former movie theater is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This means it is a special place in history.
In recent years, the outside of the building was fixed to look like it did when it was new. It has a special design style called Art Deco. The building has also continued to grow and improve.
In 2000, a new East Wing was finished. This part gave the Symphony a place for their music library and offices. It also added an elevator and other equipment to make the building easy for everyone to use. More recently, the Beecher Flad Pavilion was completed. This new section includes the Ford Recital Hall, which is a 600-seat hall for music performances. It also has new kitchens, dressing rooms, and loading areas. Special soundproofing was added so that both Powers Auditorium and the new hall can be used at the same time.
See also
- List of concert halls
