Anyone who doesn’t believe that old buildings have a certain atmosphere needs to go stand in front of the old Utah Theatre on Main Street. Look through the dirty windows. You will see a magnificent foyer stretching back nearly the length of a city block. Dusty plaster mouldings adorn the walls while paint peels away from them. And the grey marble that edges the floor is streaked with dust. Fading into the gloom is the splendor of a bygone era. It’s hard to imagine that a theater could just be abandoned, left to rot in a prominent position on a city street. But that’s what is happening to the Utah Theatre, once The Pantages, once The Orpheum.
And the feeling you get looking through the grimy windows is like you’re being watched, as though the actors and patrons who once frequented the theater are watching you, wondering what on earth has happened to their beautiful theater to allow it to go to such ruin. It’s almost like they’re daring you to find a way in and explore their old haunt.
But don’t do it.
There are things worse than rats lurking in those abandoned buildings. The things that horror movies are made of. On a more practical level, a hefty fine awaits anyone foolish enough to risk ignoring the “Absolutely No Trespassing!” signs and go inside.
Believe it or not, there were once scads of theaters sprinkled across downtown Salt Lake City. A quick Google search reveals listings of theaters with such names as The American Theatre, The Bijou Theatre, The Gem Theatre and many others. They are gone now8212;all demolished.
There are some theaters that survive, though. At least, the buildings do, though they might not be recognizable as theaters anymore. Who would have guessed that the empty Peruvian restaurant right across from the Utah Theatre was once a theater as well? At least, the address said it was. If you look closely at the building and with a little imagination you could see, in fact, that it could have been a theater at one time. A new café is opening on the premises soon. Perhaps once patrons are allowed inside, the former relations to a theater will be more obvious.
One abandoned theater that has remained obvious to the public is the Villa Theatre on 3092 S. Highland Drive. The theater opened December 23, 1949 and was one of Salt Lake City’s premiere movie houses for more than half a decade. USA Today even recognized it as one of the nation’s 10 classic theaters before its last show on February 18, 2003. Now a rug gallery, the building still carries its original theater marquee. The building was sold to present owner Hamid Adib, who was annoyed at developers’ plans to demolish the old theater to make room for a Wal-Mart in 2004. The rug gallery has operated ever since, allowing locals to preserve a few memories and a sizable chunk of history.
What should be done with these theaters that no longer service the needs of the audience? Most of them fall to the demands of modern times, replaced by office buildings and parking lots. Some, such as Capitol Theatre, have survived and are still in
use. Others, such as the Utah Theatre, simply sit and wait for a time when they will be used again. In the latter case, anyone with eyes can see the signs proclaiming that “something big” is happening to the theater. The plan is, and has been for years, to remodel the theater and turn it into a venue for touring Broadway shows8212;”Wicked” and “The Phantom of the Opera” among them. The problem there is space. There simply isn’t room behind the building for trucks to drop off the necessary large set pieces, and the dressing rooms are dark and tiny. With ownership being shunted around and money severely lacking8212;especially now8212;it is unlikely that anything drastic will be happening to the Utah Theatre anytime soon.
Perhaps it will sit empty for another 10 years.