Opening of Plaza Theater in 1930

Opening of Plaza Theater in 1930

A huge crowd accompanied the opening of the Plaza Theater on September 12, 1930. Designed as a modern film house with the flexibility of presenting stage shows, the Plaza eventually hosted popular traveling shows and movies. Its size (capacity of 2,410), elaborate decor, and technical innovations made it stand out: While the exterior facade was designed to be reminiscent of a Spanish mission-style parapet, patrons were awed by the interior, with its intricately painted ceilings, mosaic-tiled floors, decorative metal railings and sconces and antique furnishings (Spanish Colonial Revival style). Additionally, the Plaza offered electrically cooled drinking fountains, a nursery, a $850 marble and brass telecheck system that alert ushers when a seat became vacant, and a Brenograph machine that could throw over a thousand color effects onto the black-and-white scenes. However, in the 1950s, the Theater's patronage declined and by the 1970s it was sold. In the 1980s, the El Paso Community Foundation saved the Plaza from demolition and donated it to the City of El Paso in 1990. After, it was restored to its original splendor and today hosts concerts, shows, musicals and plays once again.

Área: Central / Downtown

Fuente: C.L. Sonnichsen Special Collections, University of Texas at El Paso Library. Collection Name: Plaza Theater. Photo ID: Plaza Theater.jpg.

Cargado por: UTEP Library Special Collections

Comentarios

Hacer un comentario
Gracias por su comentario

Reportar esta entrada

Elige la razón más importante para este reporte

Tu nombre

Tu correo electrónico

Detalle opcional

Gracias por su reporte

Más sobre la misma comunidad-colección

Vista hacia Ciudad Juárez

The image shows parts of the two cities El Paso and Ciudad ...

Vista hacia Ciudad Juárez

In the front the image shows parts of downtown El Paso, for ...

Hotel Angelus y Teatro Crawford

Angelus Hotel and Crawford Theater before 1944.

Llegada del Ferrocarril

While Gould's railroad company was still 130 miles form reaching ...

Ambulancia tirada por caballos

The McBean & Carr Ambulance in front of Providence Hospital. Mr. ...

Calle El Paso

South El Paso Street was the center of town in 1882. The sign on ...

Plaza San Jacinto

When the US government leased land from Smith's ranch, for the ...

Zona Centro de El Paso

Horse and Buggies meander through the streets of downtown.

Pioneer Plaza - 1908

Photograph of Pioneer Plaza in the year 1908.

Calle San Francisco

San Francisco St. taken from Pioneer Plaza located at the road's ...

Libreria Publica de El Paso

Philanthropist Andrew Carnegie funded the El Paso Public Library ...

Commandante W. J. Fewel

Started the first gas company in El Paso,Texas with Zach White. ...

Harry Wiley

Chief Deputy Sheriff Harry Wiley.

Samuel Schutz

The first Jews were drawn to the area as it became a center for ...

Dr. Walter N. Vilas

Dr. Walter N. Vilas was a major surgeon of the First Texas ...

Jonathan Rogers

Jonathan Rogers was a four-time El Paso mayor and founder, ...

Ronald D'Emory Coleman - El Paso, Tejas

Ronald D. Coleman, a United States Representative from El Paso ...

Ramon Villalobos

Ramon Villlalobos was one of the first Hispanic reporters in El ...

Barbara Funkhouser

El Paso Times Editor - first woman editor of The El Paso Times. ...

George Kinsinger - El Paso Times

Mr. Kinsinger was a member of the staff of the El Paso Times. He ...

Bill Latham, editor de El Paso Times y el Dr. Thomas Barnes

Bill Latham, the El Paso Times editor is to the left. Dr. Thomas ...

Gertrude Goodman y Sarah Lea - El Paso, Tejas

Gertrude Goodman (on the left) was commended by the Senate of ...

Sra. Paca Alarcon

Mrs Paca Alarcon came to El Paso in 1853. Then she married a ...

home.search_collection