The Gem Theatre is a performing arts theater located in Detroit , Michigan . Built in 1927 in the Spanish Revival style, it houses a two level theater with traditional row and aisle seating along with stage-level seating at cabaret tables. The Gem Theatre was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985. It shares a lobby with the cabaret-style Century Theatre , built in 1903.
6-604: In 1902, the Twentieth Century Club, a group of cultural, socially prominent women, built a Mission-style building to house their club. The building, now the Century Theatre, is built of red brick trimmed with white sandstone. The first floor originally housed a dining room, while the second floor housed a 400-seat auditorium. In 1928, the member of the Century club contracted George D. Mason to design
12-672: A theater addition to the Century Club building. The resulting Spanish Revival-style building was leased to the Little Theatre chain, which showed foreign films, and the building was known as the Little Theatre. In 1933, due to the Depression, the Twentieth Century Club disbanded. The Little Theatre, however, continued, suffering through several name changes, becoming The Rivoli in 1932, Drury Lane (and then
18-740: The Europa) in 1935, the Cinema in 1936, and the Vanguard Playhouse in 1960. The Vanguard offered live theater rather than movies. The theater received its present name in 1967. The building was used as an adult movie house until it closed in 1978. Soon afterward, developer Charles Forbes purchased the combined Gem/Century building, and began a complete restoration of the Gem Theatre in 1990. The refurbished Gem opened in 1991. Protected from demolition during urban renewal for Comerica Park ,
24-805: The first nine months without pay. Mason started out assigned to some specific detailing work on the George O. Robinson House and the Detroit Public Library . One of the first buildings in which Mason received equal billing for the design was the Ransom Gillis House . In 1878 he joined with Zachariah Rice to form the firm Mason & Rice. This partnership lasted until 1898, after which time Mason continued his practice alone. Mason married Ida Whitaker in 1882, and they had one daughter. From 1884 until 1896 Albert Kahn worked with Mason and Rice, and he returned to partner with Mason for
30-487: The latter part of the 19th and early decades of the 20th centuries. George Mason was born in Syracuse, New York , the son of James H. and Zelda E. Mason. In 1870 the family moved to Detroit, where Mason received his early education. Mason began his architectural career working for Detroit architect Hugh Smith in 1875, but this only lasted a summer. After this he moved to the firm of Henry T. Brush , where he worked for
36-535: The newest home of the Detroit Tigers , the Gem Theatre and Century Theatre were moved five blocks on wheels to its new location at 333 Madison Street on 16 October 1997. At a distance of 563 meters (1,850 feet) it is the furthest known relocation of a sizable building. George D. Mason George DeWitt Mason (July 4, 1856 – June 3, 1948) was an American architect who practiced in Detroit, Michigan , in
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