Majestic Theatre (Detroit) Explained

The Majestic Theatre
Nrhp Type:NRHP
Location:4120-4140 Woodward Avenue
Detroit, Michigan
District Map:Michigan
Nearest City:Woodward Avenue
Coordinates:42.3514°N -83.0603°W
Mapframe:yes
Mapframe-Marker:building
Mapframe-Zoom:13
Mapframe-Caption:Interactive map
Built:1915
Restored By:Majestic Theatre Center
Visitation Num:1100
Visitation Year:2019–2021
Increase:$1,000,000 (renovations)
Architect:C. Howard Crane

Bennett & Straight
Architecture:Art Deco
Added:July 02, 2008
Partof:Majestic Theatre Center
Partof Refnum:Majestic Theatres
Refnum:08000577
Designated Other1:Michigan State Historic Site

The Majestic Theatre is a theatre located at 4126-4140 Woodward Avenue in Midtown Detroit, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2008.

Today, the theatre is mainly a music venue. It hosts a variety of musical concerts in three separate areas of the building: The Majestic, The Majestic Cafe, and The Magic Stick.

History

The Majestic Theatre, designed by C. Howard Crane, opened on April 1, 1915.[1] The theatre originally seated 1,651[1] people (at the time the largest theatre in the world built for the purpose of showing movies[2]), and the facade was designed in an arcaded Italian style.[1] In 1934, the front 35 feet of the theatre were removed when Woodward Avenue was widened to its present size. The entire facade was redesigned into its current striking Art Deco motif by the firm of Bennett & Straight. The theater now boasts the largest enameled metal panel Art Deco facade in the Detroit metropolitan region.[1]

The theatre eventually closed, and the building was used as a church for a time, and later as a photographic studio.[2] It lay vacant for ten years. The present owner purchased the building in 1984.[2]

There is a myth that legendary magician Harry Houdini gave his last performance on stage here, on Halloween night 1926. In fact, Houdini last performed at the Garrick Theatre in Detroit and died a few days later of peritonitis at Detroit's Grace Hospital on October 31, 1926.

On October 25, 2019, The Majestic Theatre unveiled its new Marquee facing Woodward Avenue. This new facade is part of a greater renovation plan made public by the venue's owners in Spring 2018. The owner's pledged to put $1,000,000 of renovations into the building.[3] The Majestic Theatre was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2008.[4]

Current use

The Majestic Theatre operates as part of the Majestic Theatre Center, which includes the attached Garden Bowl bowling alley, The Majestic Cafe, The Magic Stick, and Sgt. Pepperoni's.[5]

Notes and References

  1. http://www.michigan.gov/hal/0,1607,7-160--197886--,00.html "Seven Michigan Properties Added to the National Register of Historic Places,"
  2. http://www.thedetroiter.com/b_city/blogs/index.php?blog=2&title=joe_zainea_a_conversation&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1 Leyland DeVito
  3. News: Majestic Theatre's new marquee gives Woodward a touch of classic old-school . Brian McCollum . Detroit Free Press . October 25, 2019 .
  4. Web site: Majestic Theatre . Encyclopedia of Detroit . Detroit Historical.
  5. http://www.majesticdetroit.com/ The Majestic Theater Center