Opera House
20 Liberty Street,
New Brunswick,
NJ
08901
20 Liberty Street,
New Brunswick,
NJ
08901
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The Opera House was opened prior to 1926 when it was operating as a movie theatre. This theater is listed as operating in the 1951 Film Daily Yearbook. It has been demolished and is now part of a huge parking lot.
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Listed in Film Daily Yearbook’s;1941 and 1943 editions as having a seating capacity of 1,500.
NEW BRUNSWICK HISTORY DEPARTMENT:
ORAL HISTORY ARCHIVES OF WW-II
INTERVIEW WITH JAMES G. HANDFORD
“The Opera House burned down..”
This must be a different Opera House than the original.
The original Opera House opened in the newly constructed Masonic Hall on the SW corner of George & Albany streets in 1871. That building was destroyed by fire in 1896. Great photo on page 99 of “New Brunswick & Middlesex County” by Gary Karasik 1986
Built in the early 1900s to replace the original Opera House, the “new” Opera House began with vaudeville and was later renovated for talkies. It eventually closed and was razed around 1960. Today on the site is not a parking lot but the United Methodist Church, which puts the theatre location closer to George Street but still on Liberty.
A photo can be found on page 100 of Images of America: New Brunswick.
I grew up around New Brunswick and I remember this theater. I thought that “New Opera House”, not “Opera House”, was actually the name of it. But maybe that was just what people called it. If someone has access to old issues of the Home News (newspaper then published in New Brunswick) they could check what name appeared in its advertisements.
The Methodist Church was already there, on the corner of George and Liberty Streets and facing George Street. The theater was on Liberty Street, behind the church (I’m not sure if there was anything between them).
According to an article published in the New York Times, Jan. 18, 1952, the theater was destroyed by fire on Jan. 17 of that year.
can anyone help me? does anyone remember a opera teacher back in the 30’s her last name “ new ” ? I am trying to find out some info on my late mother vassie koletis, she lived on hiram st new Brunswick, she sang opera at the 1939 worlds fair in new York ?
Reopened October 13th, 1938
Found on Newspapers.com