By Rod Arroyo, FAICP
Between 1917 and 1928, Detroit transformed into a movie lover’s paradise. The Grand Circus Park Theater District became a dazzling entertainment hub that captured the city’s explosive growth and cultural creativity. As Detroit’s population soared from 446,000 in 1910 to nearly 1.6 million by 1930, its theaters became more than just places to watch films—they were palaces of entertainment.
The Magic of Movie Theaters
This era was a golden age of theatrical architecture. Theaters weren’t just buildings; they were ornate wonderlands designed to transport audiences. Lavish structures rose across the city, and there was a dense concentration of theaters near Grand Circus Park. Many fans waited hours outside to catch the latest Hollywood sensation. These weren’t just movie venues—some offered complete entertainment experiences that included live performances and celebrity appearances before the film. In some cases, a Wurlitzer organ may have entertained the crowd.
A Technological Revolution
The district’s theaters began with silent films, capturing imaginations with flickering images. Orchestras provided a musical backdrop in places like the Michigan Theater. A pivotal moment came on December 25, 1927, when The Jazz Singer premiered at the Madison Theater, ushering in the age of talking pictures and forever-changing cinema.
By the Numbers: A Theater Lover’s Dream
The Grand Circus Park district was a marvel of entertainment infrastructure:
- 9 beautiful theaters
- 25,275 total seats
- One seat for every 62 Detroit residents in 1930
The crown jewel was the Fox Theater, boasting an incredible 5,041 seats, while the smallest, The Little Theater, seated 450 people and specialized in art and international films.
A Slice of Historical Context
This theatrical boom coincided with Prohibition, which began in 1918 and lasted until 1933. Michigan went dry two years ahead of the rest of the country. These theaters offered a legal and exciting escape during this time.
A Remarkable Comparison
To put Detroit’s theatrical abundance into perspective:
- Detroit’s Grand Circus Park District in 1930: 1 theater seat per 62 residents
- New York’s Broadway District in 2025: 1 theater seat per 168 residents
Detroit’s Grand Circus Park district offered more than 2.5 times the theater seating per capita compared to today’s Broadway—a testament to the city’s vibrant entertainment landscape. It’s not an apples-to-apples comparison, but it provides interesting historical context.
The theaters’ popularity peaked in the 1940s before beginning to decline in the 1950s, marking the end to this extraordinary era in Detroit’s cultural history. Fortunately, some of these structures continue to provide entertainment today, not as movie theaters, but as live performance and event spaces.
No Equal Access
Detroit theaters during this era practiced de facto segregation. Whites had access to all seating areas. Discrimination was not done in the form of prohibiting signs; instead, it was subtle. There are reports that this was typically accomplished by Black patrons being directed by ushers to balcony seating areas.
What is the Grand Circus?
Grand Circus Park is an open space area that Augustus Woodward included in his 1907 Plan of Detroit. It was intended to be a full circle, as Woodward’s Plan was based on a hub and spoke (radial) street pattern and equilateral triangles.
In ancient Rome, games, races, and events were held in open areas called circuses. In most cases, they were oblong in shape (Circus Maximus). In Woodward’s plan, Grand Circus was to be a full circle.
Most of what remains of Woodward’s plan is located south of Adams.
The Grand Circus Park Theater District Map
The following provides some insight into each of the nine theaters.
Adams Theater
Other names: Greater Adams Theater
Address: 44 W. Adams
Louis Kamper, Architect of Fine Arts Building on W. Adams
C. Howard Crane, Architect of Adams Theater behind (across alley) Fine Arts
Seats: 1,770
Opened 1905 (Fine Arts) 1917 (Adams), Demolished 2009
Current Status: Demolished with front façade preserved
Notable:
From HistoricDetroit.org: The Adams was known as an alley-jumper. Patrons would enter the lobby from Adams through the Fine Arts building and buy their tickets and concessions. Balcony patrons would then go up some stairs and cross an enclosed sky bridge over an alley into the auditorium in the theater, while main-floor guests would go down steps and through a tunnel underneath the alley. The Fine Arts building facade remains along W. Adams today. More photos and info: https://historicdetroit.org/buildings/adams-theatre and https://www.forgottendetroit.com/adams/index.html
Below: Historic Photos of the Adams Theater
Madison Theater
Other names: M@dison Building (current)
Address: 22 Witherell Street
C. Howard Crane, Architect
Seats: 1,806
Opened in 1917, the auditorium was demolished in 2000 and adapted to office use.
Current Status: Occupied with offices and Buddy’s Pizza on ground floor
Notable:
From HistoricDetroit.org: The Madison was the first theater in Michigan to screen a full-length talking picture, “The Jazz Singer,” which opened on Dec. 25, 1927, and was seen by more than half a million people in a three-month run. More photos and info: https://historicdetroit.org/buildings/madison-theatre-building and https://www.forgottendetroit.com/madison/history.html.
Below: Historic Photo of the Madison Theater
Capitol Theater
Other names: Grand Circus Theater, Paramount Theater, Broadway-Capitol Theater, Detroit Opera House
Address: 1526 Broadway
C. Howard Crane, Architect
Seats: 4,250
Opened 1922, Closed 1985, Reopened 1996
Current Status: Home of the Detroit Opera, Broadway plays, and concerts
Notable:
From HistoricDetroit.org: When the Capitol opened, it became the fifth-largest theater in the world. The Broadway-Capitol theater hosted Bill Haley & The Comets in 1954, playing in Detroit’s first rock show. Jazz acts in the 1940s included Dinah Washington, Louis Armstrong, and Lionel Hampton. In the 1980s, rock bands played there, including The Clash, Bon Jovi, Gang of Four, R.E.M., the B-52s, and U2 (www.historicdetroit.org). It is now the home of the Detroit Opera House.
Below: Historic Postcard of the Capitol Theater.
Michigan Theater
Other names: Michigan Palace
Address: 238 Bagley Avenue
Cornelius Rapp, George Rapp, Architects
Seats: 4,038
Opened 1926, Closed 1976, Theater gutted for internal parking in 1977
Current Status: Theater area is used for internal parking.
Notable:
From HistoricDetroit.org: In a small garage formerly located on this site, Henry Ford built his first automobile, the quadricycle. “It is not merely a theatre for Detroit,” John H. Kunsky told the Detroiter in August 1926, “it is a theatre for the whole world. It is designed to be the great showplace of the middle west.” Conductor Eduard Werner’s Michigan Symphony Orchestra and the 2,500 pipe, $50,000 Wurlitzer organ would set the mood for the silent films played there. The theatere opened with five shows daily,usually consisting of a concert by the orchestra, two 20-minute stage shows, singers and dancers, and then a film. Stars like the Marx Bros, Frank Sinatra, Red Skelton, Glenn Miller, Bob Hope, Benny Goodman, and Bette Davis all appeared on the Michigan Stage. But by the late 1940s, changing times led the Michigan to focus mostly on movies. Kunsky’s chain of theaters failed during the depression and the Michigan became part of United Detroit Theaters (one of 25 in the city). The theatre closed on March 5, 1967. In 1972, seats were removed as part of the transformation to a supper club. The supper club opened March 27 with a performance by Duke Ellington and with a new name, the Michigan Palace. Ellington, incidentally, had performed at the Michigan Theatre back in 1934. The club floundered, lasting only a few months, and the Michigan fell into the hands of rock promoter Steven Glantz, who turned it into a concert venue in 1973 but kept the Michigan Palace name. Many of the top rock acts of the 1970s performed there, including David Bowie, The Stooges, The New York Dolls, Aerosmith, Bob Seger, Rush, Iron Butterfly, Blue Oyster Cult, and Badfinger. In 1977, the building’s owners paid $525,000 to gut the theater and build a three-level, 160-space parking deck inside it. The mezzanine and balcony were brought down, as was the grand staircase and one wall of the grand lobby. More photos and info: https://www.historicdetroit.org/buildings/michigan-theatre
Below: Images of the Michigan Theater
United Artists Theater
Other names: Residences at 150 Bagley (tower)
Address: 150 Bagley Avenue
C. Howard Crane, Architect
Seats: 2,070
Opened 1928, Closed 1975, Theater demolished 2022
Current Status: The theater has been demolished, and the adjoining 18-story office tower is being converted into residential.
Notable:
From HistoricDetroit.org: The UA was built exclusively for films — a rarity at the time — and showed mostly United Artists films. The movie studio was founded in 1919 by actors Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks and director D.W. Griffith — four of the biggest names in showbiz at the top. Detroit’s UA was one of three that Howard designed in the Spanish Gothic style for the United Artists Theatre Circuit, and followed theaters in Chicago and Los Angeles. The Detroit theater was considered the sister of the Los Angeles location. Crane, who had done mostly classic theater designs up until this point, was asked to go with an exotic, Gothic style because Pickford loved the look of European castles, according to the Los Angeles Theatres Website. Pickford and Fairbanks are said to have personally approved its design.
Starting in 1979, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra used the acoustically perfect United Artists as a recording studio until 1983, when they said they couldn’t take the lack of heat, rain falling through the ceiling or lack of electricity in the building. The series of recordings for London Records, led by DSO conductor laureate Antal Dorati, included the music of Aaron Copeland, Bartok, Strauss, Tchaikovsky, Gershwin, and Stravinsky. More info and photos: https://www.historicdetroit.org/buildings/michigan-theatre
Below: Images of the United Artists Theater
Oriental Theater
Other names: RKO Downtown Theater, Downtown Theater, Pao
Address: 120 W. Adams
Percival Pereira, Architect
Seats: 2,950
It opened in 1927 and closed in 1950. Most of the theater was demolished in 1953, but the lobby remains a restaurant.
Current Status: The former lobby is used as Pao Restaurant
Notable:
From CinemaTreasures.org: This building originally opened as the Oriental Theater. It later became part of the RKO chain. As the RKO Downtown, it hosted the Detroit premieres of many famous RKO films of the early 1930s, including Cimarron (1931), King Kong (1933), and Top Hat (1935). It also hosted first runs of the classic Universal horror films Dracula (1931), Frankenstein (1931), and The Invisible Man in 1933 (Detroit Free Press). Its crystal chandeliers were removed and now hang in the lobby of Detroit’s Redford Theatre.
Below are images of and an advertisement for the Oriental / Downtown Theater
State Theater
Other names: Palms, Palms-State, Clubland, Fillmore
Address: 150 Bagley Avenue
C. Howard Crane, Architect
Seats: 2,900
Opened 1925
Current Status: Open as the Fillmore and recently renovated. Concerts and events.
Notable:
From HistoricDetroit.org: The Palm-State name comes from the building in which it is housed, the Palms Building, which was built by the Palms Realty Co. and named after prominent 19th-century Detroit banker and real estate mogul Francis S. Palms.
Below is an historic image of the State Theater and Woodward Avenue.
Fox Theater
Other names: None
Address: 2115 Woodward
C. Howard Crane, Architect
Seats: 5,041
Opened 1928
Current Status: Open
Notable:
From DetroitHistorical.org: Detroit’s Fox Theatre was originally billed as “the most magnificent Temple of Amusement in the World.” Built to replace the outdated Fox Washington Theatre, since opening in 1928 countless audiences have taken in films and performances of all kinds. The imposing ten-story structure was designed by C. Howard Crane and was built as part of the theater empire of film mogul William Fox. He owned hundreds of movie houses nationwide – many named “Fox.” The Detroit location was particularly lavish. The original “house staff” of doormen, ushers, designers and matrons numbered more than 400.
After entering through a bank of elegant brass doors and an outer foyer, guests pass into an ornate 3,600 square feet and six-story high lobby, decorated with butterflies, lions and peacocks. Beyond this is the elaborate main auditorium, which seats 5,000 and is ringed by a pillared promenade. Throughout the interior, ornamentation and decorations designed by Eve Leo – Fox’s wife – feature Egyptian, Indian, and Oriental motifs. The theatre also boasts a 36 rank Wurlitzer pipe organ.
From HistoricDetroit.org: The Fox was beginning to become a run-down theater. It was purchased in 1987 by the Ilitch family, and went through an 18-month, $12-million restoration to return it to its original grandeur. A new multistory marquee was made to replace the badly altered original.
More info and photos: https://detroithistorical.org/learn/encyclopedia-of-detroit/fox-theatre and https://www.historicdetroit.org/buildings/fox-theatre
Below are photos of the Fox Theater.
The Little Theater
Other names: Rivoli, Europa, Cinema, Vanguard, and Gem Theater
Address: 58 E. Columbia (later moved to Madison)
George Mason, Architect
Seats: 450
Opened 1928
Current Status: Open as the Gem Theater. Wedding and event space.
Notable:
The Little Theater was built as an independent and foreign film theater. Located at 58 E. Columbia (est. 1928), it was moved in 1997-98 to 333 Madison Street. It made the Guinness Book of World Records as the heaviest building ever moved.
Below is a photo of the move and an ad from The Little Theater opening.
Table 1 and Table 2 below provide details for the Grand Circus Park District and Broadway, respectively. Both tables show the seating capacity and year opened for each theater.
Historic Theaters in Detroit’s Grand Circus Park District (1930s and 1940s)
| Table 1 | |||
| Theater | Capacity | Opened | Status |
| Adams Theater | 1,770 | 1917 | Demolished |
| Capitol Theater | 4,250 | 1922 | Open as Detroit Opera House (opera, concerts, events) |
| Fox Theater | 5,041 | 1928 | Open (live theater, concerts, events) |
| Little Theater | 450 | 1928 | Open (moved) as Gem Theater (events and weddings) |
| Madison Theater | 1,806 | 1917 | Auditorium demolished, building adapted to office and retail |
| Michigan Theater | 4,038 | 1926 | Partially demolished, building now includes a parking deck |
| Oriental Theater | 2,950 | 1927 | Demolished. Lobby is adapted to a restaurant use. |
| State Theater | 2,900 | 1925 | Open as the Fillmore (concerts and events) |
| United Artists Theater | 2,070 | 1928 | Demolished in 2022. Adjacent office adapted to residential |
| Total Seats | 25,275 | ||
| Complied by Rod Arroyo, FAICP | |||
Broadway Theaters in New York (2025)
| Table 2 | ||||
| Theater | Capacity | Opened | Owner/Operator | Current production |
| Al Hirschfeld Theatre | 1,424 | 2019 | ATG Entertainment | Moulin Rouge |
| Ambassador Theatre | 1,125 | 1996 | Shubert Organization | Chicago |
| August Wilson Theatre | 1,228 | 1926 | ATG Entertainment | Cabaret |
| Belasco Theatre | 1,018 | 1907 | Shubert Organization | Maybe Happy Ending |
| Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre | 1,078 | 1927 | Shubert Organization | The Outsiders |
| Booth Theatre | 766 | 1913 | Shubert Organization | John Proctor is the Villain |
| Broadhurst Theatre | 1,186 | 1917 | Shubert Organization | Boop! The Musical |
| Broadway Theatre | 1,761 | 1928 | Shubert Organization | The Great Gatsby |
| Circle in the Square Theatre | 840 | 1951 | Independent | Just in Time |
| Ethel Barrymore Theatre | 1,096 | 1918 | Shubert Organization | Othello |
| Eugene O’Neill Theatre | 1,066 | 1925 | ATG Entertainment | The Book of Mormon |
| Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre | 1,079 | 1929 | Shubert Organization | Buena Vista Social Club |
| Gershwin Theatre | 1,933 | 1979 | Nederlander Organization | Wicked |
| Hayes Theater | 597 | 1912 | Second Stage Theater | Purpose |
| Hudson Theatre | 970 | 1903 | ATG Entertainment | The Last Five Years |
| Imperial Theatre | 1,443 | 1923 | Shubert Organization | Smash |
| James Earl Jones (Cort) Theatre | 1,084 | 1912 | Shubert Organization | Real Women Have Curves |
| John Golden Theatre | 805 | 1920 | Shubert Organization | Operation Mincemeat |
| Lena Horne (Mansfield) Theatre | 1,094 | 1926 | Nederlander Organization | Six |
| Longacre Theatre | 1,091 | 1913 | Shubert Organization | Dead Outlaw |
| Lunt-Fontanne Theatre | 1,519 | 1924 | Nederlander Organization | Death Becomes Her |
| Lyceum Theatre | 922 | 1902 | Shubert Organization | Oh, Mary! |
| Lyric Theatre | 1,622 | 1998 | ATG Entertainment | Harry Potter and the Cursed Child |
| Majestic Theatre | 1,645 | 1932 | Shubert Organization | Gypsy |
| Marquis Theatre | 1,612 | 1991 | Nederlander Organization | Stranger Things: The First Shadow |
| Minskoff Theatre | 1,710 | 1978 | Nederlander Organization | The Lion King |
| Music Box Theatre | 1,009 | 1921 | Shubert Organization | The Picture of Dorian Gray |
| Nederlander Theatre | 1,235 | 1980 | Nederlander Organization | Redwood |
| Neil Simon (Alvin) Theatre | 1,467 | 1927 | Nederlander Organization | MJ the Musical |
| New Amsterdam Theatre | 1,747 | 1968 | Disney Theatrical Group | Aladdin |
| Palace Theatre | 1,648 | 1913 | Nederlander Organization | Glengarry Glen Ross |
| Richard Rodgers (46th St.) Theatre | 1,400 | 1924 | Nederlander Organization | Hamilton |
| St. James Theatre | 1,709 | 1903 | ATG Entertainment | Sunset Boulevard |
| Samuel J. Friedman Theatre | 650 | 1998 | Manhattan Theatre Club | Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends |
| Shubert Theatre | 1,460 | 1911 | Shubert Organization | Hell’s Kitchen |
| Stephen Sondheim Theatre | 1,055 | 1918 | Roundabout Theatre Company | & Juliet |
| Studio 54 (Gallo Opera House) | 1,006 | 1927 | Roundabout Theatre Company | Call Me Izzy |
| Todd Haimes (Selwyn) Theatre | 740 | 1918 | Roundabout Theatre Company | Pirates! The Penzance Musical |
| Vivian Beaumont Theater | 1,080 | 1972 | Lincoln Center Theatre | Floyd Collins |
| Walter Kerr Theatre | 945 | 1924 | ATG Entertainment | Hadestown |
| Winter Garden Theatre | 1,526 | 1917 | Shubert Organization | Good Night, and Good Luck |
| Total Seats | 50,391 | |||
| Compiled by Rod Arroyo, FAICP. Sources: https://www.ibdb.com and thebroadwaymap.com | ||||
| A Broadway Theater must have over 500 seats to be included. | ||||