Burton Cummings Theatre
| Walker Theatre, Odeon Theatre | |
Burton Cummings Theatre
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| Location | 364 Smith Street Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada R3B 2H2 |
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| Owner | True North Sports & Entertainment |
| Capacity | 1,638 |
| Construction | |
| Opened | 18 February 1907 |
| Reopened | 1991 |
| Architect | Howard C. Stone |
| Website | |
| Official name | Walker Theatre National Historic Site of Canada |
| Designated | 1991 |
The Burton Cummings Theatre for the Performing Arts is a theatre located on Smith Street in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Built by local impresario Corliss Powers Walker, it was originally known as the Walker Theatre.
Walker owned a number of South Dakota theatres along the Northern Pacific Railway route, which terminated at Winnipeg. Walker allied himself with a New York theatrical syndicate run by a Broadway firm called Klaw and Erlanger. The positioning of Walker's chain of theatres along the railway route helped bring big Broadway shows, and the chain was known as the Red River Valley Theatre Circuit.
Lots for the theatre were purchased in July 1905. The theatre was constructed in 1906-07, and might have opened in December 1906 if there had not been a labour strike. The Walker Theatre had a grand opening on 18 February 1907 featuring Puccini's Madame Butterfly. The theatre was designed by Montreal architect Howard C. Stone who was instructed to design a fireproof theatre following the principles of Chicago's Auditorium theatre. The theatre was originally planned as part of a hotel/office/retail complex, but of the plans, only the Walker Theatre was completed. This is why the external walls are plain - the original plans called for other attached buildings to abut all but the front of the theatre. The initial construction of the theatre cost $250,000.
The building's auditorium, lobby and lounges were decorated with Italian marble, plasterwork, gilt trim, velvet carpets, silk tapestries, murals and crystal chandeliers. The auditorium seated 1,798 people. The interior features vaulted ceilings, reaching a maximum of 60 feet (18 m) in height, huge sidewall arches, 2 curving balconies, a fly tower and broad wings. The top balcony was built for inexpensive ticket holders: it was steeply raked and furnished with wooden pew-like benches. The seat prices in the theatre ranged from 25 cents for seats in the balcony, up to $2.00 for seats in the orchestra. The two balconies were built without support posts or pillars, which allowed upper-level seats a clear view of the stage. The stage area was nearly 25 metres (82 ft) wide, 12 metres (39 ft) deep, and 21 metres (69 ft) high. Behind the stage was a 3-storey block with hand elevator dedicated to dressing rooms, property rooms and scenery dock.
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