Jefferson Theatre
345 Fannin Street
Beaumont, TX 77701
The Jefferson Theatre was designed by noted architect Emile Weil and built in 1927 in Downtown Beaumont. The theater has hosted some of the world’s greatest motion pictures, including “It’s A Wonderful Life,” whose 1947 premier was held at the Jefferson Theatre, with star James Stewart and director Frank Capra in attendance.
Owned and operated by the City of Beaumont, the theatre has become the cornerstone of entertainment in Downtown. Weekly Classic Movie Nights began in August 2014 and are wildly successful with more than 12,000 attendees annually. Major concerts and shows in the last year include Pat Benatar, Bobby Bones, Russian Grand Ballet, Travis Tritt, Rodney Carrington, and Tracy Byrd.
Seating
Scaling available for 600 capacity and 1,406 capacity
Additional Information
The building boasts incredible architecture and statues, full-service dressing rooms, state of the art sound and lighting equipment, concession areas and a ticket box office. The theatre underwent a complete restoration in 2003 and is the perfect showplace for concerts, films, stage plays, weddings and receptions.
Proscenium opening 40′ X 34′
Apron 2′ downstage of curtain line
Stage Dimensions 40′ wide by 29′ deep
Orchestra pit 32′ wide 6′ fixed depth. Not Hydraulic
Crossover upstage 2’11” wide
Wingspace SL 5′ wide x 30′ deep, SR 16’wide (less piano storage) x 30′ deep
Floor Surface is black Masonite
Loading Door = 8′ wide x 10′ high
Distance from street to loading door 137 feet in private alleyway
Grid +62’0″ – Typical lineset travel 50′ 6″
24 Linesets on irregular centers, 1000lb. capacity
Line 4 is 40’3″ x 20’2″ Technikote Movie Screen
Electrics on lines 5, 9, 16, 21 with cyc lights on 21
Full set of black Legs (4 pair) and Borders (4 each)
Black traveler at mid-stage, line 14
Black drape upstage, line 24, and Cyc, line 23
Control: 192(including 24 Houselight) dimmers @ 20 amp, ETC Express 72/144
Connectors: 3 prong twist-lock, NEMA L5-20, some adapters to others available
Positions: Balcony Boom 50′ from Proscenium Center
15 degree rise FOH truss 60′ from Proscenium Center
45 degree rise, 100A 3 phase Show disconnect located USR . DMX access in booth
Instruments: 128 – Source 4 ellipsoidal stage spots
36 Source 4 PARs, 7- 3 cell Altman Cyc strips
2 – 1200 watt Metal Halide long throw Lycian Super Arcs
Control: Crest X8HS-40 – 40 mono inputs and 4 stereo inputs
Equipment: Mics, 2 wireless mics
Speaker location: Meyer system with flown Left and Right CQ-1’s and 2’s , subs and delays
Front lip and under balcony fills, XTA processors
Power: 200A 3 phase, transformer isolated, Show disconnect and isolated ground located SR
Event staff, including ushers, ticket takers, and security are provided for an additional charge. The house services provide qualified, uniformed staff familiar with the facility and event requirements. Rates and staffing levels are available upon request and arrangements can be made when reserving the building.
The Jefferson Theatre was designed by noted architect Emile Weil and built in 1927 for the Jefferson Amusement Company, Sol E. Gordon and J. C. Clemmons, partners, at a cost of one million dollars. Constructed of the finest materials available at the time, the Jefferson was a magnificent structure as well as a center for entertainment . . .a Movie Palace. The Beaumont Journal once described it in this manner: “Of striking Old Spanish architecture, the interior radiates romance and charm in the perfect blending of color, tone, architecture, sculpture, and fabric and breathes an eloquence of grandeur that is felt quite as much as it is seen.”
The Jefferson Theatre opened on Monday, November 14, 1927, with a program including The Jefferson Grand Orchestra conducted by Frank Harris, the organ played by Alice Richmond, and the movie “Rose of the Golden West” starring Mary Astor and Gilbert Roland. The theatre hosted traveling shows, vaudevillians and dramas. The Jefferson Theatre was THE showplace of entertainment for four decades and the pride of the Jefferson Amusement Company, led in later years by Julius Gordon, son of Sol Gordon. In addition to the theatre’s other dazzling appointments, a magnificent Robert Morton Wonder Organ, voiced particularly for the acoustics of the Jefferson, was installed on a platform that allowed it to rise majestically from the orchestra pit to stage level. The organ’s 778 pipes and many percussive effects produced a variety of sounds rivaling those of an actual orchestra.
The Jefferson Theatre was beautifully restored after many decades and celebrated its Grand Reopening, November 5-15, 2003.