Brantford's Theatres and Opera Houses
Apollo Theatre
Located at 163 Colborne Street, next to the Belmont Hotel, it was first operated by Ernest Moule. The Apollo Theatre was listed in the Brantford City Directory from 1910 to 1918. It was known as the Regent Theatre in 1919, the last year that it was listed in the city directory.
Brant Theatre
J. O’Reilly, the owner of the American Hotel on Dalhousie Street, remodeled the old Hext Carriage factory next door at 77-79 Dalhousie Street into a theatre in 1913. Ernest Moule, who was the manager, bought the theatre in 1914. It was the first theatre to use a professional orchestra. The Allen Bros. (Jule and Jay J. Allen) acquired this theatre upon their return to Brantford and after remodeling and redecorating it was opened on February 2, 1920 as the Allen Theatre (Brantford Expositor, January 3, 1920, p. 20). It was listed as the Allen Theatre in the Brantford City Directory in 1921 and 1922 but by the following year it was again known as the Brant Theatre. In 1951 Paramount Theatres Limited bought the theatre and changed the name to the Paramount.
Capitol Theatre
The Capitol Theatre, 88-90 Dalhousie Street, was originally known as the Temple Theatre when it was built in 1919. Famous Players bought the theatre in 1929 and changed the name to the Capitol Theatre. The City of Brantford bought the theatre for $425,000 in October 1985. The last movie, “One Crazy Summer” was shown in August 1986. After a multimillion dollar restoration it was renamed the Sanderson Centre for the Performing Arts on December 11, 1989 as a tribute to the memory of the Sanderson family who had supported many local causes.
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College Theatre
The College Theatre at 310 Colborne Street, with seating for 550 people, opened on April 6, 1939 (Brantford Expositor, April 5, 1939, p. 13). This theatre last appeared in the Brantford City Directory in 1962. In 1964 it became Talk of the Town Billiards and it is now known as Shooters Upscale Billiards.
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Colonial Theatre
Located at 16 King Street near Dalhousie, this was an open-air theatre in 1910, its first year of business. It was enclosed in 1911 and named the Colonial Theatre. Ernest Moule purchased this theatre in 1917. After making some structural improvements he changed the name to the Rex Theatre.
Esquire Theatre
This theatre opened on June 3, 1937 at 65-69 Colborne Street near King Street (Brantford Expositor, June 4, 1937, p. 2). It was last listed in the Brantford City Directory in 1955.
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Gem Theatre
The Allen family started the Gem Theatre as a vaudeville and picture house. It is first listed in the Brantford City Directory in 1910. Located at 87 Colborne Street, it was destroyed by fire on March 4, 1915, only a day after the fire at the Crompton store across the street (Brantford Expositor, March 4, 1915, p. 1).
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Grand Opera House
Brantford's first indoor ice rink was remodeled by Frank Johnson and his sons to become the Grand Opera House. The building, located at West and Darling Streets, was built circa 1880 with a seating capacity of 1,400. A fire at the Grand Opera House in August 1909 caused approximately $1,000 damage (Brantford Weekly Expositor, August 26, 1909, p. 12). James T. Whittaker became the manager in August 1915. The Opera House closed in 1928 (Brantford Expositor, February 4, 1928, p. 13) and the building remained vacant until the city seized it for non-payment of taxes and demolished it in 1931. The site was an open-air skating rink until the Salvation Army Citadel was built there in 1954.
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Kerby Hall
Kerby Hall, a part of the Kerby House on Colborne Street, opened as an opera house in 1855 and operated for 25 years. J. C. Palmer later took over the management of the hotel. The hall was converted into additional bedrooms for the hotel about the time that the Stratford Opera House opened in 1881.
Lyric Theatre
Ernest Moule, who had come from London, Ontario, opened the Lyric Theatre in December 1908. It was located in a store owned by J. Y. Morton at 156 Colborne Street. It was listed in the Brantford City Directory from 1909 to 1911.
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Odeon Theatre
Famous Players opened the Odeon Theatre at 50 Market Street on December 17, 1948 (Brantford Expositor, December 18, 1948, p. 8). A fire in the theatre in December 1979 destroyed about 10 rows of seats and resulted in a great deal of smoke and water damage (Brantford Expositor, December 17, 1979, p. 16). Cineplex-Odeon closed this theatre on January 21, 1999 because of poor attendance (Brantford Expositor, January 21, 1999, p. 1). The building remained empty for several years before Vicano Construction Ltd. bought the building in 2003 and converted it into the Laurier Mohawk building with four lecture halls which opened in September 2004 (Brantford Expositor, August 28, 2004, p. 1).
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Paramount Theatre
Originally known as the Brant Theatre at 77-79 Dalhousie Street, it was bought by Paramount Theatres Limited and renamed the Paramount in 1951. This theatre was last listed in the Brantford City Directory in 1960.
Rex Theatre
Ernest Moule renamed the Colonial Theatre at 16 King Street as the Rex after he purchased it in 1917 and made some improvements. It seated 800 people. This theatre was last listed in the Brantford City Directory in 1922.
Sanderson Centre for the Performing Arts
Located at 88 Dalhousie Street this building was originally the Temple Theatre which opened in 1919. After Famous Players bought the building it became the Capitol Theatre. The City of Brantford bought the theatre in 1985 and restored it. The name was changed to the Sanderson Centre for the Performing Arts on December 11, 1989 in honour of the Sanderson family who supported many local causes.
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Stratford Opera House
James Ker built the Ker Music Hall at 140 Colborne Street, between Market and Queen Streets, in 1866 at a cost of $15,000. However, not finding it a profitable business he sold it to the local Baptists in 1868 to use as a tabernacle. After Joseph Stratford bought the building in 1876 he spent a lot of money renovating the building into an opera house. which opened in November 1881. Frank C. Johnson and his sons, Frank C. Jr., Walter, and Harry, took over the Opera House in 1902. The building was destroyed by fire on January 1, 1908 with extensive damage to several businesses nearby.
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Temple Theatre
The Temple Theatre opened on December 22, 1919 with five vaudeville acts and the silent movie “Heart of the Hills” starring Mary Pickford (Brantford Expositor, December 23, 1919, p. 14). It was designed by Thomas Lamb, a Scottish architect working in New York and built by P. H. Secord and Sons at a cost of $350,000. Called Brantford’s “Supreme Playhouse”, the ceiling was suspended from the roof by a steel girder system so that there weren’t any pillars to obstruct the view. The main entrance was on Dalhousie Street and the auditorium could seat 1,600 people with 950 seats in the lower section and 650 seats in the balcony. Famous Players bought the theatre in 1929 and changed the name to the Capitol Theatre. The theatre was wired for sound and showed the first “talkie”, “Interference”, on May 23, 1929.
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The Theatorium
Barney Allen and his two sons, Jule and Jay J. (Allen Amusements Company), opened the first moving picture show in Brantford on November 10, 1906. It was located in a store at 43 Colborne Street across from the Paterson Biscuit factory. On September 11, 1908 there was a natural gas explosion and the theatre, along with several other businesses, was destroyed. Two people, Charles Hornie and Joseph Blayborough, were killed (Brantford Expositor, September 12, 1908, p. 1). After opening the Gem Theatre and the Wonderland Theatre the Allen family eventually sold their interests in these theatres and moved to Calgary where they established a chain of theatres and got into the film distribution business. They later moved their headquarters to Toronto and in 1920 Jule and Jay J. Allen came back to Brantford and acquired the Brant Theatre.
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