Carpenter Theatre

When I was a teenager, my boyfriend took me to the Lowe’s Theater in downtown Richmond. It was a beautiful theater. As I descended the staircase from the Mezzanine, I felt like a princess surrounded by plush carpet, dark velvet and gold trimmed drapes. The lovely pinkish, subdued lighting made me feel like a star on the screen. This was in the early 1960’s. Remembering the vibrant Wurlitzer played by (I think) Eddie Weaver still brings a smile to my face. What a grand time. I was born and raised in Richmond and moved to the beautiful Shenandoah valley 30 years ago. I attended a performance at the Carpenter Center several years ago and I am so pleased that steps are being made to preserve this beautiful landmark. I remember well going to the S & W Cafeteria just up the street and shopping at The May Company, LaVogue, and Thalhimers. What a great time in my life. Wonderful memories!!!!!

Loew’s was a major national circuit, but far from the largest. At maximum, it had between 150 to 200 theatres, mostly in the eastern USA and especially in the vicinity of New York City, where the company originated. In many major cities, it had only one downtown first-run theatre and nothing else. Paramount had at least ten times as many theatres as Loew’s…Loew’s Theatres, of course, was part of Loew’s, Inc., which also owned Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures. This monopoly was eventually ended by the Federal Government, causing Loew’s Inc. to split into two completely separate companies with different managements. One was restricted to production-distribution, and the other to exhibition.

I believe that this theatre’s name was simply Loew’s, not Loew’s Richmond.

Basile Baumann Prost & Associates, Inc. (BBP Associates) lists this theater renovation as one of their projects. They are a real estate development advisory firm.

Always enjoy seeing an Eberson/atmospheric theatre as the featured CT Theatre! Hope to visit Richmond someday and check this one out!

Just watched Food Nation with Bobby Flay and he was in Richmond VA. He told us about some great restaurants there, but we know there are 2 great theatres there, too…..thanks to CT.

Loew’s Grand in Atlanta is listed here but was NOT an atmospheric. As far as I know, Atlanta’s only atmospheric was (and still is) the Fox.

What an astounding building…great…

Opened as Loew’s Richmond Theatre on 9th April 1928 with the M.G.M. silent film “West Point” starring William Haines and Joan Crawford. The supporting programme consisted of M.G.M. Short Subjects and News, Sid Bart leading the 12 piece Loew’s Concert Orchestra and Lloyd Oscar on the mighty 13 Rank Wurlitzer theatre pipe organn.

It closed as a full time movie theatre in May 1979, lay empty until it was purchased by the Richmond Symphony, restored and re-opened as the Carpenter Centre for the Performing Arts on 5th May 1983.

Just before closing, the Wurlitzer organ was removed for ‘safekeeping’ and donated to the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. Another organ (originally in the RKO-Keith Theatre, New York City) was donated to the Carpenter Center and after many years of volunteer work to install it, it made its debut in April 1992. This current Wurlitzer has 24 Ranks, which is much larger than the original 13 Rank installation.

John Eberson was known for some vivid colorations as seen in many of his theatres and as brought out in the piece “Fancy Dress” in the Oct. 1984 issue of INTERIOR DESIGN magazine where a lengthy article and ten color photos of his LOWE’S RICHMOND in Richmond Virginia (now the Carpenter Center for the Performing Arts). In the final paragraph of the article, the restoration architect, Fred Cox, is quoted as saying: “During the restoration there were times that we were a little worried we’d end up with something vulgar, especially as we got down to the original layers of paint and discovered what an eccentric colorist Eberson was. But a funny thing happened as we applied the finishing touches to the interior — it seemed to crystallize, become whole and complete. That was Eberson’s vision.” As was pointed out in the 1930 book AMERICAN THEATRES OF TODAY, the colors used often had to be far more vivid than normal due to the often subdued lighting coming from amber or rose colored lights. We today are used to much higher light levels, but too high a light level in a restoration can make the colors look garish and destroy the subtle ambience designed by the architect. These palaces were to be ‘carriages’ to lands of fantasy, after all, not the duplication of a living room.

When it was a movie theatre for the Loew’s company it seated 2113 people.