Rivoli Theatre - South Fallsburg, NY
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nomadwillie
N 41° 42.563 W 074° 37.721
18T E 530891 N 4617576
The Rivoli Theatre in South Fallsburg, was built in 1923, renovated in the late 1930s and remains almost intact from that period.
Waymark Code: WM1638W
Location: New York, United States
Date Posted: 04/25/2022
Views: 1
The Rivoli Theatre in South Fallsburg, was built in 1923, renovated in the late 1930s and remains almost intact from that period.
It was a major local source of entertainment, both live and filmed, in the area during the peak years of the Jewish summer resorts in that region of the Catskills. Today a community theatre program continues to put on plays there every summer. In 2001 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. On July 6, 2012, the Rivoli Theatre once again began running movies.
The theater building consists of two separate sections: a six-by-three-bay front with the foyer and lobby, and a one-story, seven-bay auditorium. The front marquee is a three-sided neon sign supported by chains, augmented by a vertical neon sign on the front. The lobby and foyer are in their original size and shape but have been refinished in newer materials. The 160-foot (49 m) auditorium is still in its original Art Deco style.
Israel Kaplan and his son Arch opened the Rivoli to provide entertainment for summer vacationers in 1923. They are credited as designers, but the similarities to Emil Motel's Rialto Theatre in nearby Monticello suggest that Motel, who is credited with the Rivoli's later redesign, was the original architect of the Rivoli as well.
The Rivoli was a success, showing both movies and live stage productions. In 1937 the Kaplans had the theater expanded to accommodate 600 and remodeled in the then-current Art Deco style. Its prosperity continued throughout the Catskill resort era, where the live-entertainment Borscht Belt nurtured many future stars. Former patrons remember frequent lines around the corner.
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