Sheldon Theatre
443 W. 3rd Street,
Red Wing,
MN
55066
443 W. 3rd Street,
Red Wing,
MN
55066
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Related Websites
The Sheldon Theatre (Official)
Additional Info
Architects: Lowell A. Lamoreau
Functions: Performing Arts
Previous Names: Auditorium Theatre
Phone Numbers:
Box Office:
800.899.5759
Manager:
800.899.5759
Nearby Theaters
Built in 1904 with funds from local businessman T.B. Sheldon, it is the country’s first city-owned theatre. In 1986, it was gloriously restored to its original grandeur. Described as a “glittering jewel box”, it charms performers and audiences alike. It screened its final movie in May, 1988. Today it operates year-round, presenting a broad range of touring events – including music, theatre, dance, comedy, films, lectures and more.
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Recent comments (view all 2 comments)
The theater’s architect was Lowell A. Lamoreau. Construction was by J. and W.A. Elliot & Co. It was not the nation’s first municipal theater. The Academy of Music Theater in Northampton, MA. preceded it by 14 years.
The manager who wrote “Boxoffice” reviews was most likely Eddie Swanson who received an award from Boxoffice near the time of his death in late 1955. He was succeeded by James Fraser who may have continued the tradition.
See my recent book,Thomas Olson, “Sheldon’s Gift: Music, Movies and Melodrama in the Desirable City,” NorthStar Press of St. Cloud, 2009.
The Auditorium Theatre did face trouble in 1958, when the Minnesota Supreme Court ordered the Auditorium to quit the movie business. The theater’s board found a way around the ruling, however, by leasing the theater to James Fraser. Fraser had been the theater’s manager, and he continued to show movies there. In 1960, the Minnesota Supreme Court handed down its final decision, which was unanimously in favor of the Auditorium.
Poor management caused continued financial problems for the theater in the 1970s and 1980s, causing several short closures from here-and-there. In 1984, the board established a task force to raise money to restore the theater, but this did not last long as a movie theater. The Auditorium briefly reopened again in early-1988 but ended its days as a movie theater in May of that year, but it continued to host live entertainment.