Gettysburg College's Majestic Theater featured in 'New York Times' on Jan. 4

Majestic Theater

GETTYSBURG, Pa. - Gettysburg College's Majestic Theater was featured in Jan. 4's "Escapes" section of the New York Times. One of five historic theaters in Central Pennsylvania featured in the piece, the 87-year-old Majestic Theater underwent a $16-million renovation, completed in 2005, that revitalized the historic landmark and former vaudeville stage showcasing early 20th-century opulence to a 21st-century performance venue. The theater features Broadway shows, classical and popular music, dance, comedy, children's theater, film classics and other attractions.

Jeffrey Gabel, founding executive director of the Majestic was also quoted in the piece regarding the types of entertainment that used to populate the theaters.

“If you talk to enough theater managers, Al Jolson, Mark Twain and W. C. Fields played every vaudeville house in America. Most theater archives were destroyed by flooded basements or thrown out in the constant change in ownership.”

To read the NYT article, click here.

More information on the Majestic Theater is available below. 

A stage in history

When the Majestic Theater opened in 1925, it was the largest vaudeville and silent-movie theater in south-central Pennsylvania, and it continued to play a vital cultural role through most of the century. President Dwight D. Eisenhower and First Lady Mamie Eisenhower attended regularly. The Majestic hosted the U.S. premier of Federico Fellini's film masterpiece, Satyricon, and the world premier of the Civil War epic, Gettysburg.

A Majestic revitalization

The renovation project has created a world-class center for the performing arts, with an 850-seat theater, two cinemas, an art gallery, access for patrons with disabilities and Mamie's Café, offering pre- and post-performance dining with a swanky, 1950s ambience.

Today's Majestic Theater is dedicated to offering a diverse program of professional touring artists, College performances, and cinema, including the Philadelphia Dance Company, student productions and independent and foreign films.

Gettysburg College is a highly selective four-year residential college of liberal arts and sciences with approximately 2,600 students. It is located on a 200-acre campus adjacent to Gettysburg National Military Park in Pennsylvania. The college was founded in 1832.

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