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State Theatre
Formerly The Blackstone | Opened January 29. 1921
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Banko Capital Presents - The State Theater Downtown South Bend, IN
Banko Capital Presents - The State Theater Downtown South Bend, IN
01:31
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Banko Capital Presents - The State Theater Downtown South Bend, IN

State Theatre Video Tour
02:17
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State Theatre Video Tour

South Bend Indiana: The First 150
06:28
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South Bend Indiana: The First 150

The State Theater: Back Up in Lights
03:26
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The State Theater: Back Up in Lights

EVP State Theatre
00:55
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EVP State Theatre

SPACESHIPS @ The State Theater South Bend, IN
04:12
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SPACESHIPS @ The State Theater South Bend, IN

"Billed in early newspaper advertisements as “The Pride of South Bend,” the 2,500 seat State Theatre in South Bend, Indiana opened on January 29, 1921 as the Blackstone Theatre.

 

Construction lasted for 16 months and cost $500,000 ($6.7 million when adjusted for inflation). Henry L. Newhouse — an architect known for many theaters in the Chicago area — designed the building with a neoclassical exterior and a beaux-arts interior.

 

Unlike many other theaters built during this time, the State did not have one traditional balcony; instead, it had tiered seating in the rear of the auditorium, and two small balconies on either side, beginning at the organ chamber and ending over the third tier seating section.

 

Designed for silent motion pictures and vaudeville shows, the opening day feature was the silent film “Once to Every Woman,” starring Dorothy Phillips and a then-unknown Rudolph Valentino." AfterTheFinalCurtain.net

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