The Stadium Theatre Performing Arts Centre & Conservatory is a historic

movie theater A movie theater (American English) or cinema (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English), also known as a movie house, cinema hall, picture house, picture theater, the movies, the pictures, or simply theater, is a business ...

and

concert venue A music venue is any location used for a concert or musical performance. Music venues range in size and location, from a small coffeehouse for folk music shows, an outdoor bandshell or bandstand or a concert hall to an indoor sports stadium. Ty ...

and commercial building at 28 Monument Square in

Woonsocket, Rhode Island Woonsocket ( ), is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 43,240 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, making it the sixth largest city in the state. Being Rhode Island's northernmost city, Woonsoc ...

. The complex consists of two connected sections, one housing the theater, the other offices, both with retail spaces on the ground floor. The theater was designed by Perry and Whipple of

Providence Providence often refers to: * Providentia, the divine personification of foresight in ancient Roman religion * Divine providence, divinely ordained events and outcomes in some religions * Providence, Rhode Island, the capital of Rhode Island in the ...

and built in 1926. Initial funding came from Mrs. Norbert Champeau, a widow with interest in the theater, but the project was soon taken over by Arthur I. Darman, a local industrialist. Although it lacked the opulence of theaters in larger cities, it was one of the most elaborately decorated performance spaces in Woonsocket. The theatre's name comes from the "stadium" style of seating, which allowed everyone in the audience a good view of the stage.

History

The Stadium opened in 1926 as a vaudeville house. The declining theatre added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1976. The theatre showed x-rated movies in 1980s and closed in 1985. The building declined and decayed until Mayor Francis Lanctot started a campaign to save the building and raised over $3 million in donations. The renovated venue reopened in 2001. The film

There's Something About Mary ''There's Something About Mary'' is a 1998 American romantic comedy film directed by the Farrelly brothers, who co-wrote the screenplay with Ed Decter and John J. Strauss. The film features Cameron Diaz as the title character, while Ben S ...

by the Farrelly Brothers premiered in the Stadium in 1998. In 2014, Rhode Island voters approved a bond measure to set aside $2 million to renovate the four-story structure adjacent to the theatre, to be used as dedicated space for costuming, sets, props, and performing arts classes.

References

External links

Stadium Theatre Web site
Cinemas and movie theaters in Rhode Island Theatres on the National Register of Historic Places in Rhode Island Buildings and structures in Woonsocket, Rhode Island National Register of Historic Places in Providence County, Rhode Island Theatres completed in 1926 Music venues completed in 1926 1926 establishments in Rhode Island {{ProvidenceCountyRI-NRHP-stub

History

See also

References

Further reading

External links