105-year-old Vaudeville Theatre

About the Space

The Theatre in Tacoma, Washington, was designed by the architect B. Marcus Priteca. The structure opened in January 1918. It was designed to be an office building and a vaudeville theater. The theater's Second Renaissance Revival style is juxtaposed with the commercial style. The exterior above the ground floor is largely unaltered. The building uses a steel frame with reinforced concrete walls. The Ninth Street and Broadway facades are white, glazed terra cotta in a matte finish. The Commerce Street façade is made of yellowish-toned brick. The Ninth Street facade of the theater is divided horizontally into three major sections, and vertically into five bays. The lower level of the facade, which conforms to the steep Ninth Street grade, has received a minimum of elaboration, typical of a Renaissance, palazzo base. The central level of this elevation, equivalent to three stories in height, features a triple-arched blind arcade set within the three central bays. Each individual archway: is punctuated by a pedimented, structural opening with a large ornamental cartouche above. These central bays are each framed by imposing, pseudo-Corinthian pilasters and half pilasters, all three stories in height. The blind arcade is solidly flanked by sparsely-decorated outermost bays. Structural openings on the same level as those of the central bays are capped with segmental-arched pediments. Five bracketed balconettes underline these openings, creating a strong horizontal course, that firmly ties the variant bays together. A heavily proportioned entablature repeats the-horizontal movement across the full five bays on this facade. The entablature has a simple architrave, festooned frieze, and cornice with a boldly projecting dentil course. A substantial parapet above the cornice is simply ornamented with raised terra cotta rosettes, and rectangles.