Belcourt Theatre
Encyclopedia
The Belcourt Theatre is a 2-cinema theater operating in Nashville
's Hillsboro Village
district. It is operating by a non-profit organization, and features independent films, as well as live performances.
, the longest running children's theatre of its kind, and the venerable Grand Ole Opry both shared the Belcourt stage during the 1930s. The Opry's tenure from 1934 to 1936 shaped the format the radio show still uses today. Due to the intimate size of the room, the Opry began playing each show to two separate audiences. Performers found themselves playing two fifteen-minute performances rather than the single half-hour performance to which they were accustomed.
In November 2007, the theatre was purchased by a non-profit coalition of local arts activists (operating as "Belcourt Theatre Inc.") for $1.4 million.
. The venue is home to Nashville's incarnation of the 48 Hour Film Project
and other festivals and special events.
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
's Hillsboro Village
Hillsboro Village
Hillsboro Village is a neighborhood of Nashville, Tennessee, located 3 miles southwest of downtown.The center of Hillsboro Village is located along Hillsboro Road, a major thoroughfare dating from before the Civil War...
district. It is operating by a non-profit organization, and features independent films, as well as live performances.
History
Opening in 1925 as the Hillsboro Theatre, the Belcourt originally operated as a silent movie house, boasting the most modern projection equipment and the largest stage in the city. As the community grew, the Belcourt adapted to the new needs of the neighborhood by providing a regular home for two highly successful performance groups. Nashville Children's TheatreNashville Children's Theatre
Nashville Children's Theatre is the oldest professional children's theatre company in America. It is also Tennessee's only professional, non-profit theatre dedicated exclusively to kids and families....
, the longest running children's theatre of its kind, and the venerable Grand Ole Opry both shared the Belcourt stage during the 1930s. The Opry's tenure from 1934 to 1936 shaped the format the radio show still uses today. Due to the intimate size of the room, the Opry began playing each show to two separate audiences. Performers found themselves playing two fifteen-minute performances rather than the single half-hour performance to which they were accustomed.
In November 2007, the theatre was purchased by a non-profit coalition of local arts activists (operating as "Belcourt Theatre Inc.") for $1.4 million.
Today
The Belcourt currently features a variety of entertainment events, including film—much of it independent—as well as live performances within the same venue. Its concession stand is a rarity as it includes a variety of food and drink items, including pizza, wine, and draft beer from local brewerey YazooYazoo Brewing Company
Yazoo Brewing Company, a Nashville, TN brewery, was founded in 2003 by Brewmaster Linus Hall. The brewery was located in what was once the Marathon Motor Works factory building in downtown Nashville, but moved to The Gulch in March, 2010...
. The venue is home to Nashville's incarnation of the 48 Hour Film Project
48 Hour Film Project
The 48 Hour Film Project is a contest in which teams of filmmakers are assigned a genre, a character, a prop, and a line of dialogue, and have 48 hours to create a short film containing those elements. Shortly after the 48 hours of filmmaking, the films from each city are then screened at a theater...
and other festivals and special events.