Stanley Theater (Utica, New York)
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| Address | 261 Genesee Street Utica, New York United States |
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| Owner | Stanley Center for the Arts |
| Type | Movie palace |
| Capacity | 2,963 |
| Screens | 1 |
| Current use | Performing arts center |
| Opened | 10 September 1928 |
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Stanley Theater
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| Coordinates | 43°5′56″N 75°14′10″W / 43.09889°N 75.23611°WCoordinates: 43°5′56″N 75°14′10″W / 43.09889°N 75.23611°W |
| Architect | Thomas W. Lamb |
| Architectural style | Baroque |
| NRHP Reference # | 76001255 |
| Added to NRHP | August 13, 1976 |
The Stanley Theatre is a historic Baroque movie palace in Utica, New York. Over the years, it has gone through several changes of ownership, but has always been affiliated with Warner Brothers Pictures.
Originally owned by the Stanley-Mark Strand Corporation chain, the Stanley Theatre (and entire movie theatre chain) was purchased three days before opening by Warner Brothers. The company was eager to showcase its products on as many screens as possible. The theatre opened on September 10, 1928, with the silent movie Ramona starring Dolores del Río.
Thomas W. Lamb, a prolific theatre architect, designed the 2,963 seat cinema for the Mastbaum chain of theatres. The theatre was named for Stanley, one of the Mastbaum brothers. While Lamb and his firm designed over 300 theatres worldwide, he is considered to be somewhat of a local, having owned a camp in the Adirondacks. (His great grandson lives in the Albany area today.)
The Stanley was built in less than 13 months on the expanding southern edge of downtown, some four blocks away from Utica’s theatre district. Unfortunately, all the theatres located there were razed during the Urban Renewal era of the 1960s and 70s. The Stanley remained open through all of this, though it suffered many years of benign neglect. In 1974, when the threat of destruction became very real, the Central New York Community Arts Council (renamed Stanley Center for the Arts in 2008) spearheaded a campaign to acquire the property, which it did for $135,000.
The design motif of the Stanley Theatre is dubbed “Mexican Baroque” because of its unique blend of styles. The terra cotta and tiled mosaic exterior shows the Mexican influence, while Habsburg lions, Indian faces, and a multitude of angels and cherubs grace the lavish gold leaf Baroque theatre interior. Moorish influence is also evident in the star-splashed ceiling and twisted columns flanking the stage. Legend has it that the grand entry staircase was designed to resemble the main staircase on the Titanic ocean liner.
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