Coleman Theatre
The expansive Oklahoma sky provides a striking backdrop for this white stucco Spanish Colonial Mission-style building, and the effect is dramatic.
This building is a showstopper.
This is the Coleman Theatre, built by local mining magnate George Coleman in the early 20th century to attract world-class vaudeville acts to Miami. He hired Kansas City architects, the Boller Brothers, to design the building, which was constructed in just 330 days for the cost of $600,000.
Today, the building is listed on the National Register of Historic places, and hosts theatrical performances, concerts, movies, and even weddings. Free tours are also offered Tuesdays through Saturdays, and this is how I got my first peek at this stunning theater.
I visited the Coleman Theatre on a scorching Saturday in July, and found welcome relief inside the air-conditioned building. My tour guide pointed out that the theater even offered an air-cooling system way back when it opened on April 18, 1929, which was quite a luxury in rural northeast Oklahoma at the time.
The decor of the lobby in the Coleman reflects the opulent style of the time. A gold statue stands at the foot of the grand staircase (which is original), holding a candelabra, and illuminating the path for visitors to the theater.
The plush red carpet is patterned with the Coleman family crest, and the ceilings are accessorized with intricate crown molding which is accented with more extravagant gold-leafing. Rich, polished wood reflects the dazzling light of the ornate chandeliers. This lobby is ready to receive the Great Gatsby himself.
Then there’s the theater. Velvet-curtains (original) flank the stage, which features the backdrop (also original) from opening night in 1929. During restoration, this backdrop was found stashed high above the stage; it was touched up, and then insured for over $1 million.
The original magnificence of the building has been restored by the non-profit organization called Friends of the Coleman, which began this arduous task in 1990, shortly after the Coleman family donated the theater to the city of Miami. Over the next few decades, people volunteered their time and skills to return the Coleman to her original elegance.
These are some dedicated people, I tell you. The story of the backdrop restoration is just one of many surprises, big and small, experienced by the Friends of the Coleman. Here are some of them:
Carpet: Someone found a remnant of the original carpet, and today’s floor covering is an exact replica.
Crown Molding: By the time the Friends of the Coleman had begun working on the theater, all of the crown molding had been removed in an effort to “modernize” the building (what were people thinking in the ‘60s, anyway?). Luckily, original molds were found in the basement and new molding was made using those.
A mold of the Coleman family crest
Chandelier: The spectacular 15-foot main chandelier in the theater was made in Venice, Italy.
It contains 250 lights and weighs 2,000 pounds. Every two years the chandelier is lowered and bulbs are replaced, if necessary. The man who cares for the chandelier now is the son of the man who took the chandelier down in the 1950s, and the grandson of the man who originally installed it in the theater. Now that’s reliable service that you can only find in a small town.
The pipe organ: Oh, the Mighty Wurlitzer. Built in 1928, this is a theater organ, which differs from a church organ in that it’s designed to sound like a full orchestra, and it can also create sound effects like whistles and train horns. Originally, when the Coleman’s organ played, it could make the Venetian chandelier change colors. Fancy!
There are only 18 Wurlitzers remaining in the world, according to our tour guide. The organ you see here is the original organ, although its whereabouts were actually unknown when the Friends of the Coleman began the restoration. But a diligent volunteer finally tracked it down in an organ collection in Texas; a deal was made, and the Coleman’s Wurlitzer found its way back home.
Our tour guide pressed a button on the organ which played a pre-programmed song, and we were able to experience its rich sound. The organ’s pipes are discreetly located behind curtains in what appears to be the box-seat sections in the front of the theater.
Dennis James is the Coleman’s resident organist, and he plays at the theater about three times each year, providing sound effects and music while a silent movie is shown on stage. Unfortunately, I’d missed his most recent performance by just a few weeks, but I’ll keep checking the Coleman’s event calendar for his next one.
Our tour continued backstage with more interesting stories about the Coleman. We saw the original stage switchboard, which only the resident electrician is permitted to touch, for obvious reasons.
We passed an original fire door so imposing it looks like it could have contained the Great Chicago Fire.
We peeked inside the “star” dressing room, a tiny pie-shaped space located just off stage. Here, performers like exotic fan dancer Sally Rand, magician Harry Blackstone, Will Rogers, and Bing Crosby (Coleman’s close friend) prepared for the stage.
We then visited the green room in the basement, where the rest of the actors lounged while waiting for their scenes. Our tour guide led us to a side room which was used as a studio where local artists drew posters to advertise movies, as the studios at that time didn’t send promotional material.
One artist who began making posters for the Coleman when he was a teenager went on to enjoy worldwide success in his career. This was Charles Banks Wilson, and some of his works can now be seen in the Smithsonian and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Wilson and other Miami residents are recognized in plaques hanging outside on the north side of the Coleman, on the Celebrity Park Wall of Fame.
When the tour ended, our guide invited us to walk around the theater and take pictures. I spent a few minutes doing just that, then found myself joining up with yet another tour group. For the next 40 minutes I was completely captivated as I listened to a different guide share his unique experiences at the theater.
Even the tours are entertaining performances at the Coleman.
The Coleman Theatre is located at 103 N. Main Sreet. Click here to visit its website, and click here to follow the Coleman on Facebook.
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This article was commissioned by the Joplin CVB, however the opinions expressed are purely my own. The purpose of Joplin MO Life is to highlight all the best that our area has to offer, and when an article is written about a restaurant, business, attraction, or event, it is because I have had an enjoyable experience and want to share it with others.
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Living Life to The Fullest!
I love seeking out new experiences and finding places off the beaten path. I started Joplin MO Life in August 2013 as a way to share my discoveries with others in the Joplin community so that they can learn about the resources that exist right in their own backyards.I have worked in education and event planning, and have always loved to write. I hold a master's degree in journalism from the University of Oklahoma and a bachelor's degree in marketing from Tulane University.
