State Theatre - Easton, PA - Live Stage Theaters on Waymarking.com

"State Theatre, originally known as Neumeyers Vaudeville House and now the State Theatre Center for the Arts, is an historic theater located in the City of Easton, Northampton County, Pennsylvania. The building began to take its present form in 1910, when modified from a bank building to a vaudeville house. The building was extensively modified in 1926, to include a larger auditorium, balcony, and lush decorations. It was at that time it was renamed "The State." The building is asymmetrical with a cut stone Beaux-Arts style facade and large overhanging marquee." SOURCE Historical speaking, The original was erected in 1873 and was known as the Northampton National Bank which included the granite facade and the Foyer which were original. By 1910, the bank was demolished and the small Neumeyer Theatre was built. It seems (from what I read) aspects of the original bank remained. Somewhere in 1914-1916, the theater's name changed from Neumeyer Theatre to the Northampton Theatre, and then finally to the Colonial Theatre.

The nomination form has an excellent description which I shall borrow:

The Theater possesses a cut stone Beaux Arts facade which is partially masked by a large overwhelming marquee. Below the marquee, the walls are covered with panels of pink cararea glass, several of which have been removed on the Western border of the building. The area below the marquee is dominated by a large octagonal ticket booth which is highly ornamented with wood carving and a pyramid roof. Flanking the ticket booth are two small stone fronts with large glass windows. passing through the exterior doors, which have large beaded glass panels, one enters a large lobby with a 30 foot high ceiling and cut stone walls. Many of the original features such as the huge highly ornamented mirrors are in-tact. On the left of this room near the entrance to the auditorium a wide stairway ascends to a large ballroom and rehearsal studio, which is now utilized as a dance school. The theater hold approximately 1,400. Almost all the original auditorium features, including orchestra pit, Wurlitzer organ, painted back-drop, electrical prompter, and crystal chandeliers are still in-tact. SOURCE

By 1981, the theatre was turned over to the National Development Council. Threatened with demolition, a group of concerned citizens calling themselves the "Friends of the State Theatre" raised enough money to purchase the theatre, screening classic films to ensure some income. The State Theatre was established as a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. By 2001, the State Theatre celebrated its historic 75th season. The annual reading program "Spotlight on Reading," encouraging literacy in local 5-8 year-olds, begins during the summer of 2001. For the first time ever, the State Theatre stages over 100 performances in one year.