Campus Theatre Explained

Campus Theatre
Address:413 Market Street
City:Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Owner:Campus Theatre Ltd. and
Bucknell University
Architect:David Supowitz
Type:Theatre
Yearsactive:1941 onwards
Website:https://www.campustheatre.org/

Campus Theatre is an entertainment venue in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, United States. Opened in 1941, and located on Market Street, it is one of the few single-screen Art Deco movie houses in the country still in operation, and forms part of Lewisburg Historic District.[1] It is now co-owned by Campus Theatre Ltd. and Bucknell University.[2]

The theater, designed by David Supowitz, was founded by the Steifel brothers (Oscar, Harold, Moritz (Morris) and Barney), Russian immigrants who ran an empire across New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.[3] Its opening night was January 17, 1941, when it showed the Jack Benny and Fred Allen musical comedy Love Thy Neighbor.[4]

Moriss's son, Harold, took over the management of the theater in 1953, when his uncle, Barney, retired.

In 2001, Bucknell University film and media studies professor Eric Faden leased the theater from Jacquie Steifel, Harold's widow, and founded Campus Theatre Ltd. as a nonprofit organization. Five years later, Bucknell purchased the building and leased it back to Campus Theatre Ltd. for $1 a year.

The theater underwent a $2.5 million renovation in 2011, including the addition of the Bucknell Bison logo on its facade.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Scotta Magnelli continues at the helm of the Campus Theatre . 2024-05-08 . lockhaven.com . en-US.
  2. Web site: About Us – Campus Theatre . 2024-05-08 . en-US.
  3. Web site: Our History – Campus Theatre . 2024-05-08 . en-US.
  4. Web site: La Coz . Cara . 2021-09-08 . Premiering: The Campus Theatre- Spotlighting the Campus Theatre’s History . 2024-05-08 . The Bucknellian.