Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett
In 1921 Thomas G. Moses wrote, “Some good work for Balaban and Katz gave us a variety.” I bet; Balaban & Katz movie palaces were in a league all their own.
Sam Katz, Morris Katz, Barney Balaban, and Abe J. Balaban joined together in 1916, establishing Balaban & Katz. The firm became well known for constructing a chain of ornate heaters for motion picture. In 1921 Chicago papers ran advertisements for “Balaban & Katz Wonder theatres – The World’s Foremost Amusement Palaces.” By the spring of 1921, the firm ran theaters in the north, west and south sides of Chicago. The Central Park Theatre was located at Roosevelt Road (12th St) and Central Park Avenue; the Riviera at Broadway and Lawrence, and the new Tivoli at Cottage Grove and 63rd Street.
When Moses mentioned work for Balaban & Katz at the beginning of 1921, he was likely referring to the Tivoli. Announcements for the new venues elaborated: “Tivoli Service, you are entitled to it! That’s the Balaban & Katz slogan which greets you from the screen of the wonderful Tivoli Theatre. And it means exactly that. Courtesy, comfort and care are dominating features of the Balaban & Katz theatres – the Central Park, Riviera and Tivoli.” Advertisements elaborated, “Fifty-three energetic ushers, nattily clad and in perfect esprit de corps, assist the thousands of visitors of the Tivoli theatre to commodious seats. Their conduct is precise and gentlemanly. They’re college and high school youths, for the most part, drilled by a military and theatrical expert to meet all emergencies” (Chicago Tribune, 7 March 1921, page 6).
The 3,500-seat Tivoli Theatre at 6329 Cottage Grove opened on February 16, 1921. Designed by the architectural form of Rapp & Rapp, the theater was two stories high and fashioned in a French Baroque style, decorated and furnished by the Mandel Brothers with draperies of rose silk plush, and velours. There was even gold cloth with heavy applique work and studded jewels. The colors of magenta, turquoise, green, cream and gold tones were found throughout the lounge, mezzanine and promenades. The lobby’s ceiling mural was even intended to resemble the Sainte-Chapelle at Versailles. Marble and gold leave permeated every nook and cranny of the space, living up to the purported $2,000,000 price tag.
That fall Balaban & Katz opened the Chicago Theatre on October 26. Of the $4 million endeavor, newspaper advertisements billed the Chicago Theatre as “Wonder Theatre of the World.”
Larger than the Tivoli Theatre, the Chicago was a 5,000-seat venue that operated as a combination house. There was a full stage with complete scenic and lighting systems. The presentation department prepared elaborate prologues and other scenic effects for motion picture presentations. Here is a link to some lovely photos and a write up about the Chicago Theatre by Mike Hume at historictheatrephotos.com (https://www.historictheatrephotos.com/Theatre/Chicago-Theatre.aspx).
These opulent stages embraced the use of sumptuous fabrics and dimensional details for not only the building, but also for the stage. In many ways their appearance signaled the definitive shift from painted ornament to dimensional ornament in stage art. Although scenic studios still produced an abundance of painted illusion, change was in the air, as the largest projects began to embrace the skills of the interior decorator much more so than the scenic artist. There is a notable shift from scenic art to scenic craft for many projects by the 1920s. The “variety” that Moses mentioned about the Balaban & Katz projects in 1921 would permeate the industry and become standard.
To be continued…
