Retlaw Theater

23 South Main Street,
Fond du Lac, WI 54935

2 people favorited this theater

The Retlaw Theater opened to the public on December 25, 1925 as a venue for vaudeville and movies. Eventually, movies became the sole form of entertainment. Around 1990, the Retlaw Theater was twinned. The theater closed in 1998.

The building was sold in 2000 and in 2001, it re-opened for a time as the Bravo Performing Arts Center. This was a venue showcasing various arts, including a dinner theater situated in the former lobby, a dance studio on the third floor, and live theater for children and young adults.

By early-2008, the property has been sold again and the possibility of a restoration project has been mentioned.

Contributed by Bryan

Recent comments (view all 12 comments)

nlenburg on February 16, 2008 at 3:55 pm

Here’s a link to an early post card view of the Retlaw Theater:

http://webpages.charter.net/nlenburg/Retlaw.htm

Jason Fox on March 28, 2008 at 10:46 pm

Since the Bravo Productions site does not appear to work, what is the current status of the former Retlaw? Has there been any movement towards restoration?

nlenburg on March 30, 2008 at 9:33 am

The building has a new owner. Chuck Boyd wants to restore the theater, but I don’t know what kind of progress he has made or what his timeline might be. He now refers to it by it’s original name: Retlaw,“ rather than Bravo Performing Arts Center. Nothing has changed in the signage, as the name above the canopy is "Fusion,” the name of the restaurant inside. I do not live in Fond du Lac and haven’t been inside the building for five years or more. I will be going to the city sometime in May, and will try to visit the theater.

Here’s a link to the restaurant web site:
http://www.fusionbymark.com/

Here’s a link to a story that appeared last fall regarding a commemorative holiday ornamant featuring the Retlaw:
http://www.actiononline.net/feature10_28.html

A photo of the theater from late 1956 or early 1957 is included with the ornamnet design superimposed. The windows seen above the canopy were covered over sometime after the photo was taken in a remodel and remain covered today. There is a brief reference at the end of the “Retlaw Theater memories” article to Mr. Boyd and his plans for the theater.

nlenburg on April 27, 2008 at 11:41 am

Here’s a link to contemporary photos of the Retlaw Theater’s exterior: http://webpages.charter.net/nlenburg/retlaw/

Jason Fox on April 28, 2008 at 3:01 pm

Norm, Thanks for the inforamtion on the current status of the Retlaw. Its encouraging that there is a move to restore the theatre for the community, hopefully it will come to pass.

One question for anyone who may know…does/did the Retlaw have a balcony? The Sanborn maps that I’ve seen seem to indicate that it did not.

nlenburg on April 28, 2008 at 3:41 pm

I can tell you the Retlaw NEVER had a balcony. At the time it was built, one of its claims to fame was that it was the largest single-floor theater in Wisconsin (around 1140 seats). The benefits of a single-floored auditorium were excellent sight lines and lower construction costs. The down-side was higher cost for land because the auditorium occupied more space per seat. All in all, it was a pretty house, but not very ornate along the side and back walls. The proscenium arch, faux-boxes fronting the organ chambers, and the ceiling were quite attractive. All of this ornamentation survives to this day, but I do not have any photos to show it.