Poli's Palace Theater
Worcester, Massachusetts
Poli's Palace Theatre is an outstanding example of a "palace" theater, luxurious theaters built for combined vaudeville/motion picture shows in the early 20th century. These grand theaters of 2,000 to 3,000 or more seats featured imposing lobbies, awe-inspiring auditoriums and elaborate lounges that were grand in scale and trimmed with lavish detailing. Constructed for Sylvester Z. Poli's New England theater chain and designed by internationally-known architect Thomas W. Lamb, Poli's Palace is the oldest, largest, and most architecturally significant of three large vaudeville/motion picture houses surviving in Worcester. Major renovations to the theater in the 1960s and 1970s resulted in subdivision of the original single hall into multiple movie theaters. New owners completed a major rehabilitation with the assistance of state and federal historic tax credits in 2008, returning the theater to a single auditorium (now called the Hanover Theater), restoring and recreating original architectural ornament that had been lost or hidden behind layers of paint and drywall. With its grand orchestra and balcony restored, proscenium boxes rebuilt, and three-tier chandelier reinstalled, Worcester's "new" performing arts theater was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 2011.
 |
 |
||||
|
|||||
