Embassy Theatre

Rochester, NY

123 Main Street East

, Rochester, NY 14604 United States

(map)

Status:	Closed/Demolished
Screens:	Single Screen
Style:	Unknown

Function:	Unknown
Seats:	1000
Chain:	Unknown

Architect:	Unknown
Firm:	Unknown

A theatre had existed on this South Avenue site since the 1860's. The first theatre built on this spot was destroyed by fire in the 1890's and replaced with a new theatre by the name of Cook's Opera House. Under this name it hosted such stars as Buffalo Bill and Sarah Bernhardt.

The interior was a fairly elaborate late Victorian opera house with two horseshoe shaped balconies. The five story facade was topped with a frieze spelling out the theatre's name, underneath which was a row of terra cotta busts depicting characters from the opera "Faust".

In the 1920's Cook's Opera House began operating as the Family Theatre, and was the last holdout in Rochester to show silent movies when talkies were sweeping all before them. Later the theatre became the Embassy, which was mainly known for its burlesque shows.

The theatre was closed in the 1950's and remained a well preserved, but shuttered, building until the 1980's, when city began eyeing the site for a new convention center. While the convention center was being opposed by local citizens interested in restoring Cook's Opera House and reopening, it a fire of "mysterious origin" swept through the structure and destroyed it, causing Rochester to lose it's final 19th century theatre, remaining in near original condition.

Contributed by Carl Laitenberger

YOUR COMMENTS

The Embassy theatre did not survive until the 1980's as mentioned above. The fire that destroyed the Embassy occured in I believe, 1973. The theatre was to have been renovated and incorporated into a city plan to develop the downtown area of the Genesee river,which ran behind the theatre. The Rochester Riverside Convention Center now sits on the site.

posted by charlesc on Dec 15, 2007 at 10:00pm

The Embassy can be seen on the right in this 1947 photo from the Rochester Public Library:
http://tinyurl.com/6arc3k

posted by ken mc on Aug 23, 2008 at 9:53am

As the "Cook Opera House", this theater is listed under Rochester in the 1897-98 edition of the Julius Cahn Official Theatrical Guide. George Geiling was the Mgr and the seating capacity was 1,500. The theater had both gas and electric illumination. The proscenium opening was 33 feet wide X 26 feet high, and the stage was 51 feet deep. The theater was on the ground floor and there were 7 in the house orchestra. It's also described as "Cook's Opera House". The other Rochester theater listed in this Guide is the Lyceum, wiith 1,698 seats. The 1897 population of Rochester was 160,000.

posted by Ron Salters on Aug 23, 2008 at 10:12am

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