Michigan Theater - Ann Arbor, MI
Posted by: 
YoSam.
N 42° 16.763 W 083° 44.494
17T E 273937 N 4684436
One of two magnificent theaters in downtown.
Waymark Code: WMZFXP
Location: Michigan, United States
Date Posted: 11/05/2018
Views: 1
County of theater: Washtenaw County
Location of theater: Liberty St. between Division St. and State St., Ann Arbor
Phone: (734) 668-8463
Added to the NRHP: November 28, 1980
"Opened in 1928, the Michigan Theater was hailed as “a Shrine to the Arts… not built for today only, but constructed in the hopes that it might be a monument for years to come and a credit to the community…” Detroit architect Maurice Finkel designed an outstanding silent film exhibition theater appropriate for a town with a world-class university at its core. The Michigan Theater contained a fully functioning stage, a sizable orchestra pit, an elaborate Barton theater organ, grand lobbies, and over 1,700 seats, all designed around its core capability of being a theater intended for film exhibition. In its early days, the theater was operated as a commercial vaudeville and movie house with occasional national touring theater and other performing arts attractions. Additionally, rare circumstances would allow productions by local arts and civic organizations to play the Michigan’s stage.
"Over the years, most significantly in 1956, Butterfield made renovations to the theater’s interior and façade to update it to the tastes of “modern” audiences. The Butterfield Theatre Corporation vacated the building at the conclusion of their 50 year lease in 1979. Future plans for the building included gutting the interior and turning the space into a food court and retail center in an effort to revitalize the sagging downtown economy.
"The not-for-profit Michigan Theater Foundation (MTF) was formed in May of 1979. The theater doors opened and the programming occurred solely because of a team of dedicated community volunteers, led by film scholar and theater organist Henry Aldridge and John Briggs, who was the president of the local stagehand union. Two capital campaigns, spanning the years 1985 to 2002, led to a spectacular restoration of the Historic Auditorium and lobbies plus the addition of the 200-seat Screening Room, new restrooms, and office space. The excellence of the MTF’s restoration and construction has resulted in many awards and articles about its restoration work and process." ~ Michigan Theater