Mishler Theatre
Encyclopedia
The Mishler Theatre is a Beaux-Arts stage
and movie theater
located at 1208 Twelfth Avenue in Altoona, Pennsylvania
. It was designed by Albert E. Westover and built by local theatre owner and manager Isaac Charles Mishler and opened on February 15, 1906. Nine months later, the neighboring Rothert building caught fire, which quickly spread to the theater, destroying the interior. The theater was rebuilt and re-opened in 1907.
It was added to the National Register of Historic Places
in 1973, and is located in the Downtown Altoona Historic District
.
in 1965. In response, the Altoona Community Theatre and the Blair County Arts Foundation purchased it and began renovation. The theatre reopened in 1969 for a performance of The Sound of Music
.
Early renovation included replacement of the seats and the lobby's chandelier
, the new one purchased in 1970 at a Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
auction. Major structural, plumbing
, and electrical
work began in the early 1990s. At the most recent estimate, the restoration has cost approximately 1.8 million dollars.
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
and movie theater
Movie theater
A movie theater, cinema, movie house, picture theater, film theater is a venue, usually a building, for viewing motion pictures ....
located at 1208 Twelfth Avenue in Altoona, Pennsylvania
Altoona, Pennsylvania
-History:A major railroad town, Altoona was founded by the Pennsylvania Railroad in 1849 as the site for a shop complex. Altoona was incorporated as a borough on February 6, 1854, and as a city under legislation approved on April 3, 1867, and February 8, 1868...
. It was designed by Albert E. Westover and built by local theatre owner and manager Isaac Charles Mishler and opened on February 15, 1906. Nine months later, the neighboring Rothert building caught fire, which quickly spread to the theater, destroying the interior. The theater was rebuilt and re-opened in 1907.
It was added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1973, and is located in the Downtown Altoona Historic District
Downtown Altoona Historic District
Downtown Altoona Historic District is a national historic district located at Altoona, Blair County, Pennsylvania. The district includes 240 contributing buildings in the central business district and surrounding residential areas of Altoona. The buildings were primarily built after about 1860...
.
Restoration
After disuse in the mid-20th century, the theatre was considered for demolitionDemolition
Demolition is the tearing-down of buildings and other structures, the opposite of construction. Demolition contrasts with deconstruction, which involves taking a building apart while carefully preserving valuable elements for re-use....
in 1965. In response, the Altoona Community Theatre and the Blair County Arts Foundation purchased it and began renovation. The theatre reopened in 1969 for a performance of The Sound of Music
The Sound of Music
The Sound of Music is a musical by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the memoir of Maria von Trapp, The Story of the Trapp Family Singers...
.
Early renovation included replacement of the seats and the lobby's chandelier
Chandelier
A chandelier is a branched decorative ceiling-mounted light fixture with two or more arms bearing lights. Chandeliers are often ornate, containing dozens of lamps and complex arrays of glass or crystal prisms to illuminate a room with refracted light...
, the new one purchased in 1970 at a Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer...
auction. Major structural, plumbing
Plumbing
Plumbing is the system of pipes and drains installed in a building for the distribution of potable drinking water and the removal of waterborne wastes, and the skilled trade of working with pipes, tubing and plumbing fixtures in such systems. A plumber is someone who installs or repairs piping...
, and electrical
Electrical wiring
Electrical wiring in general refers to insulated conductors used to carry electricity, and associated devices. This article describes general aspects of electrical wiring as used to provide power in buildings and structures, commonly referred to as building wiring. This article is intended to...
work began in the early 1990s. At the most recent estimate, the restoration has cost approximately 1.8 million dollars.