Sedgwick Cultural Center
7137 Germantown Avenue,
Philadelphia,
PA
19119
7137 Germantown Avenue,
Philadelphia,
PA
19119
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Can anyone tell me what the link to “Sedgwick” is? Interested in history of the theatre’s name.
A new life for the Sedgwick?
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“In a recent interview Burns noted that when he first started cleaning up the Sedgwick for ‘Measure for Measure,’ he spent four days just removing the dust and grime that had collected since the place had been turned into a warehouse some years ago.”
suggests that maybe they’ll reopen the main theater? for now they’re just in the lobby. this NEEDS to be done!
Hello from England ! Very interesting to read about the Sedgwick Theatre – and see the photos of the wonderful Art Deco interior. I am researching my family tree and there is a connection with the Sedgwick Theatre. – My Great Aunt May ( from England ) married a man called ‘Lee Balsley’ ( I think it is Lee, but definitely Balsley ), and he was the Manager at the Sedgwick Theatre for a time. I don’t know dates but I am guessing it was after the end of WW2. If anyone has any further information, that would be of interest. Many thanks. Graham Brown. Essex. England.
Here are some photos by Rob Bender.
Is the moving and storage co. still the owner of the building. Many years ago the owner gave me a tour again you must use the loading dock doors to get auditorium. He took the time to show me the entire building. What a great theatre it once was. When it was open my buddie and go to this theatre along with the others on Germantown Ave and the one ones on Chelton Ave. As a kid my grandmother ran the Chelten theatre one of the small houses in the area. rg
The Theatre Historical Society visited the Sedgwick during their Philadelphia Conclave on July 11th of this year. It is indeed still in operation as a community center in the section of the building housing the lobbies.
We also went into the auitorium, but had to do so through the stage loading dock doors as it is still sealed off from the lobbies and used as a wharehouse. Wow, what a beautiful ceiling.
The lobbies have some spectacular art deco plaster work, but quite a bit of it is damaged and missing. It will take a lot to bring it back to it’s former glory.
Still no activity and the lobby is empty. The center must be out of business. The video store th the left of the theatre built a small screening room and shows movies. I guess it would cost to much to do it at the center. rg
Here is a circa 1940s photo from the Irvin Glazer theater collection:
http://tinyurl.com/lq6j7k
A Moller theater organ opus 5230 size 3/19 was installed in the Sedgwick Theater in 1928 at a cost of $17000.00. Note: Moved (several times) and is now living in the Keswick Theater in Glenside, Pa.
Without a date or other information, the ticket price doesn’t mean much. It might have been for a midweek matinee in an era when 32 cents was worth a lot more than it is today. The average movie ticket price in 1958 was 50.5 cents, and even less before that. And “average” means a median between the highest and lowest prices being charged at that time.
This is an old ticket for the Sedgwick Theater. With a ticket price of 32 cents, I guess they have to sell insurance to make some money. :)
The website now tries to sell you insurance.
Here is a July 2003 article about the theater and Germantown Avenue:
http://tinyurl.com/38btsq
It appears the center is closed. Web site down and front of the old theatre is empty. What’s up. rg
Here is an article about the theater and the surrounding neighborhood:
http://tinyurl.com/2loj4u
Is the moving and storage co. still there. It doesn’t seen to be very active. rg
This is a recent photo of the Sedgwick Cultural Center.
Here is a memory I came across on the internet of the Sedgwick (the author is listed)
View link
The Sedgwick Theatre located at 7137 Germantown Avenue, north of both the Rialto and the Upsal, in the Mount Airy section of Philadelphia. This 1,600+ seat theatre was built in 1928 in the art deco style. As with most theatres of the time, it had a stage for live shows but was never used for that purpose on the scale as the Orpheum, the Germantown (Vernon), the Colonial or the Tulpehocken (Rialto). Mostly, it was used as a motion picture theatre. It closed in 1966 as a movie theatre. Today, the striking art deco façade is still in place with its elaborate detailing. You can’t miss it driving along Germantown Avenue. It is today used as the Sedgwick Cultural Center, that offers various programs for the community, but is no longer a theatre. Mount Airy is considered one of the current Philly “hot spots” and this building is part of that revitalization effort.
When the Sedgwick was a theatre, it was owned by Stanley Warner Theatres
According to Irvin R. Glazer’s “Philadelphia Theaters,” the Sedgwick’s orginal design included a balcony, which was eliminated during construction. But the auditorium’s vertical proportions were not changed, and the cloister-vaulted ceiling added a sense of immensity to the ground floor of 1,636 seats.
The cultural center only uses the outer and the large inner lobbies.
The Aud. is the warehouse for a moving and storage company. To get to certain parts of the theatre you must get to them from the the warehouse. The owner was kind enough to walk me thru it. It was a nice theatre at one time. ray