Ramsdell Theatre facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Ramsdell Theatre
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 Location in Michigan
Location in the United States
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| Location | 101 Maple St, Manistee, Michigan |
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| Area | 1 acre (0.40 ha) |
| Built | 1902—1903 |
| Architect | Solon Spencer Beman |
| Architectural style | possible Colonial Revival architecture or Greek Revival architecture |
| NRHP reference No. | 72000640 |
| Added to NRHP | January 13, 1972 |
The Ramsdell Theatre is a special old building in downtown Manistee, Michigan. It's a historic playhouse and opera house where people perform plays and shows. A local businessman and politician named Thomas Jefferson Ramsdell paid for it, and it was built in 1902. This theatre replaced two older ones that had burned down in 1882 and 1900. Besides plays, the building was later used to show movies. Did you know that famous actor James Earl Jones (the voice of Mufasa and Darth Vader!) started his acting career here? He was an actor and even a stage manager at the Ramsdell!
Contents
Discover the Ramsdell Theatre's Amazing Features
The Ramsdell Theatre is known as one of the best opera houses built in small Michigan cities around the early 1900s. It was built between 1902 and 1903. Thomas Jefferson Ramsdell, who was the only lawyer in town, paid $100,000 for it. This would be a lot of money today! The famous architect Solon Spencer Beman designed the building.
The theatre is located at First and Maple Streets. In 1972, it was named a National Historic Landmark. The state of Michigan also recognized it as a Michigan Historic Site in 1980. The Theatre and the Ramsdell Great Hall next to it work together as a community center for the area.
The Theatre's Unique Design
The building's style is often called Greek Revival or Grecian. Some also describe it as a classic Colonial design. The front of the building is made of red brick. It has Doric columns that hold up a flat portico (a porch-like entrance) over the main door.
The Theatre and the Ramsdell Great Hall are actually two separate buildings. They have a solid wall between them, even though they were built at almost the same time. The theatre has a sloped roof called a hipped roof. It also has a decorative border with closely spaced, teeth-like blocks called a modillion cornice. You can also see ornamental brick panels and a beautiful painted dome inside.
Inside the Theatre: Seating and Stage
The theatre has two balconies and special private viewing boxes on the main floor. Originally, it could seat 1200 people, but now it seats 489. This is partly because the very top balcony is closed for fire safety. There are two seating boxes near each side of the stage and two more in the lower balcony. A cool thing about the inside is that the balconies are shaped like a horseshoe.
The auditorium has changed more than the outside. The biggest change is a projection booth added in the middle of the top balcony. This booth was built before April 1925, so movies could be shown there.
The stage is about 34 feet (10 meters) deep and 60 feet (18 meters) wide. The proscenium arch, which is the frame around the stage opening, is 26 feet (8 meters) wide. The raised frame where lights hang above the stage is 70 feet (21 meters high). There are also two fly galleries almost 30 feet (9 meters) above the stage. These are walkways where stagehands can work with scenery.
An interesting feature is a paint gallery, which is 33 feet 10 inches (10.3 meters) above the stage floor. This allowed artists to paint scenery backdrops while they were hanging up, instead of having to use ladders or lay them flat. The theatre also has nine trapdoors on the stage. Three can be lowered, and six can be raised from the stage floor.
Artwork in the Theatre
The front curtain, called A Grove Near Athens, was created by Walter Burridge. It is still used today! Burridge was a famous artist who painted scenery for plays and operas all over the United States. He also made large circular paintings called cycloramas for big national exhibitions.
Frederick Winthrop Ramsdell, who was Thomas Jefferson Ramsdell's son, painted the dome in the auditorium. He also painted two curved wall sections called lunettes in the lobby. The lobby scenes show women listening to a young musician. The dome painting shows Venus, surrounded by cherubs, riding a chariot through the sky.
How the Theatre Was Planned and Built
Planning for the Ramsdell Theatre started in 1901. This was after two earlier opera houses in Manistee had been destroyed by fire. The third opera house, built by Ramsdell, is the building we see and use today as the Ramsdell Theater.
The Assembly Hall next door was finished in 1901, before the Theatre. An opening party was held there in December 1902. The theatre itself officially opened on September 4, 1903. The first show was a play called A Chinese Honeymoon. Tickets for this first show were very expensive, from $10 to $25 for the best seats. Later shows had lower ticket prices.
When it was being built, some people called the Theatre "Ramsdell's Folly." This was partly because it cost so much money. The original plan was to spend $25,000, but it ended up costing $100,000 when it was finally finished.
A Look at the Theatre's History
From 1903 to 1914, the Theatre was used for many different events. These included plays by professional touring groups, community events like amateur plays, and also movie screenings. By 1914, the theatre wasn't being used much for live performances anymore. By the 1920s, the theatre space was mostly empty and wasn't used for stage shows again until 1951.
Thomas Jefferson Ramsdell passed away in 1917. In 1925, the Manistee Rotary Club bought the theatre for $25,000 from his family. The Rotary Club mostly ran the theatre as a movie cinema. They also had occasional vaudeville performances (a type of variety show).
The Butterfield Theatre company leased the building in 1927 to show movies. Butterfield kept the lease until the City of Manistee took control in 1941.
The Theatre's Comeback
The Manistee Civic Players group was formed in 1939. The Butterfield company let the Players use the theatre space for two plays and their rehearsals each year. The Civic Players performed many shows over the next few years. In 1943, the City of Manistee bought the Theatre from the Rotary Club. The City only used the Assembly Hall for the Manistee Recreation Association, leaving the Theatre itself closed.
In 1950, a group of women's clubs created the Civic Betterment Committee. Their goal was to bring the Ramsdell Theatre back to its original purpose.
The Manistee Drama Festival was started in 1951. That first season, they put on plays like George Washington Slept Here and Dracula. The money earned from these shows helped to restore parts of the theatre. In 1952, the Festival changed its name to the Manistee Summer Theatre. Madge Skelly was hired as an associate director. Skelly directed eight plays that year and became the managing director in 1953. The city of Manistee bought the theatre and hall that same year. Skelly was in charge of the Summer Theatre until 1961. After 1963, the Manistee Civic Players started producing three or four shows each year, often including a musical.
James Earl Jones's Connection
Famous actor James Earl Jones worked at the Ramsdell during the summer of 1953. He started as a stage carpenter and sometimes acted. From 1955 to 1957, he was the Summer Theatre's stage manager and took on bigger acting roles. Jones first played Shakespeare's character Othello on stage at the Ramsdell in 1956. He performed this role while also working as the stage carpenter and stage manager! He has returned twice to help raise money for the theatre's restoration.
In 1990, the Ramsdell Restoration Committee was formed to raise money and manage the repairs. The Ramsdell Governance Committee was created in 2005 by local business people. The city of Manistee took over responsibility for the building in 2006.
Historical Marker
There is a Michigan State Historical Marker placed at the front entrance of the theatre.
