. . . A Prominent Iowa City Predecessor: Coldren Opera House
The original opening of Englert Theatre with its legitimate stage and orchestra pit, plus a huge retractable screen for motion picture presentations, coupled with a new University of Iowa auditorium in Macbride Hall, which had been opened during 1908, spelled doom for another notable Iowa City institution, Coldren Opera House (initially Grand Opera House) at 105 College Street.
Although calling itself an opera house, little opera was ever performed there. Rather, the name avoided less respectable terms, such as "theater" or "drama house." From its opening during 1877 until its 1912 closing, the Coldren had served hundreds of the prominent traveling road shows of its era, as well as a variety of university functions from presidential inaugurations to graduation ceremonies.
The Coldren interior, considered spectacular in its time, had featured an array of chandelier and sconce lighting fixtures using coal gas produced locally beginning during 1857. Its stage lighting was state-of-the-art during the late 19th century. After the Coldren purchase and remodeling of 1897, it seated 845 on three levels within two floors of the structure.
For movie screenings, the Englert succeeded improvised store-front movie houses in Iowa City adapted on flat floors with such names as Dreamland, Nickledom, American, and Bijou. The first, Dreamland, had been opened during 1906 at 111 South Dubuque Street, just south of Jefferson Building, by Fred Racine, who became widely known later for what became his four cigar stores with pool tables and ornate soda fountains. The Bijou name now is used by a student activities board screening old titles in the university's Iowa Memorial Union during the academic year.
The original film showing in Iowa City, however, was not even in a building, but a tent pitched in Dubuque Street to show the 12-minute-long 1903 flick The Great Train Robbery (film). Admission cost a dime, or about $2.50 in 2012 dollars.
The Englert remained a local commercial movie house until 1999, although significantly damaged more than a decade earlier by its division into two auditoriums. The building was offered for sale, and purchased by a widely known local bar owner for possible use as a night club.
A public drive to "Save the Englert" project resulted. As sufficient funding was raised and arranged, reconstruction took the Englert back to its antique grandeur, including its original configuration as a single auditorium. It so operates today.
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