The Chevy Chase community then rallied around its preservation, and it reopened as a nonprofit theater in 2003.
The theater closed down after its parent company Loewe’s went bankrupt. In 2001 The Avalon nearly closed its doors permanently. An intricate mural on the ceiling depicts the god Mercury casting a reel of film across the sky to a cherub. The added space leaves room for 450 people in the main auditorium. It now houses a second auditorium, which has a capacity for about 200 people. When it first opened, The Avalon theater’s spacious auditorium sat 1,200 people. In a tour, Smith provided a behind-the-scenes look at The Avalon’s movie-projection rooms and recounted the cultural significance of the cinema. “I want to see some simple upgrades that make it better not only from an appearance perspective, but make it better for the people that come here so that they can see, whether it’s visually seeing a backlit poster case is a good example, or maybe some improvements in our cafe,” Smith said. Smith is in charge of making changes to the equipment, upgrades to the interior, and managing the theater’s operation. Recently, I took a certificate program at George Mason in facility management,” Smith said. But I also was hired for my facilities background. “My job is to lead the team, and try to make improvements and increase efficiency. In an interview over Zoom and an in-person tour on April 1st, Smith spoke passionately about his role in maintaining the historic theater.
His last job was working as operations manager for the enterprise division of the Air and Space Museum’s IMAX Theater.
AVALON THEATER MOVIE
He has been working at movie theaters since the age of seventeen when he parked cars at a drive-in theater part-time. George Smith is the Director of Operations at The Avalon. Its ornate bronze marquee juts out on Conn Ave in Chevy Chase neighborhood, where patrons buy tickets at the box office for the foreign, independent, and mainstream movies offered at the old-fashioned theater. Comfortable shoes are recommended.Caption: George Smith stands in front of The Avalon’s box office stand.įor 100 years the Avalon theater has been a reminder of the traditional American moviegoing experience.
*This tour requires uphill walking inside the Casino. Your general admission ticket to discover the casino entitles you to $2 off regular admission to the Catalina Island Museum for Art & History. Be sure to step out on the Romance Promenade that encircles the ballroom for some of the most spectacular views of Avalon. The theatre’s original pipe organ, one of the last of its kind, was built, shipped and installed by the Page Organ Company of Lima, Ohio.Ībove the theatre, the Casino’s world-famous ballroom once hosted thousands of dancers grooving to the sounds of big band music. The amazing acoustics produced by the theatre’s 50-foot domed ceiling were studied and replicated by designers of New York’s Radio City Music Hall. Created by John Gabriel Beckman, whose work also adorns Hollywood’s Grauman’s Chinese Theatre, the Casino’s murals depict the history of Catalina’s cultural evolution.īuilt in 1929 near the end of the Silent Era, Avalon Theatre was among the first in the world to be designed specifically for “Talkies.” It has been fully restored to its original grandeur, complete with solid black walnut panels, Art Deco furniture, Tiffany-esque lights and gold-leaf accents. You’ll marvel at the soaring hand-painted murals that grace the entry way of this architectural masterpiece. Step back in time as you meander through one of Catalina’s most well-known landmark. Discover the Casino Experience the Rich Cultural History of this Iconic Landmark
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