15 Debevoise Street at Graham Avenue Brooklyn, N.Y. 11206 The Folly Theatre first opened on November 4, 1901 with George W. Monroe in the stage comedy, “Mrs. B. O'Shaugnessy.” Designed by Dodge & Morrison, the Folly was built on a 150 by 100 foot plot on the corner of Debevoise Street and Graham Avenue, and featured an imposing 95-foot high domed tower with a flagpole from which floated the burgee of The Folly. The auditorium seated 850 on the main floor, 600 in the balcony, and almost as many more in the gallery. All seats, including those in the boxes, had a clear view of the stage that measured 36 by 80 feet and could accommodate the largest and most elaborate scenery. From their seats, patrons could see three ceiling paintings of dancing figures by Virgilio Tojetti — the center one showing ‘Love and Music,’ and the side panels ‘Night and Day’ — with large sun and moon for backgrounds. There were also elaborate floral paintings and other decorations, the work of Illanic Panzironi in collaboration with Mr. Tojetti. The Folly was also the first theatre in Greater New York erected under the new theatre building laws that required large and numerous exits and fireproof construction. For its first several years, the Folly was a successful presenter of legitimate plays, but the program evolved to include musical shows and vaudeville. Around 1904-05, the Folly was leased by William Fox (one of his first theatres), who began to show silent movies. By 1937, the Folly had been dropped by Fox Theatres (by then known as Randforce in Brooklyn) and was struggling to survive under independent management. In 1949, the long-shuttered Folly Theatre was sold to a developer who planned to replace it with a modern, two-story business building. The Folly was demolished in December 1949. |
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