Lyric Theatre
124 S. Main Street,
Blackstone,
VA
23824
124 S. Main Street,
Blackstone,
VA
23824
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This may have been the second or even third location of the theatre. It first appears on the April 1925 Sanborn in a two story brick commercial building that was constructed sometime after 1919, replacing a wooden store.
The theatre was listed with 150 seats through 1929. It did make the transition to sound, with the Phototone system. It disappears from listings after the 1932 Yearbook.
The building still exists behind a horrible cheap dryvit facade applied by the bank on the corner.
Contributed by
Seth Gaines
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The October 23, 1925 issue of The Blackstone Courier said that contracts had been let for extensive improvements to the Lyric Theatre. The building was to extended by 20 feet, with 15 feet added to the auditorium and 5 feet to the entrance. In addition, a (segregated) balcony would be added. The ad featured the line “Electric Orchestra Will Furnish Music.” That was probably a Fotoplayer, the most popular such instrument in small theaters of the era who could not afford organs.
An ad in the September 2, 1921 issue of the Courier announced the opening September 5 of the new Lyric Theatre, formerly the Blackstone Theatre. The remodeled house was under new management. This must have been when the Lyric moved from its former upstairs location. A brief article adjacent to the ad noted the opening of the Lyric Confectionary, attached to the theater, so “…patrons can get refreshments without leaving the building.” This must have been the small shop denoted by a dotted line on the 1925 Sanborn map.