Discover the Entertainment and History of The Glove Theatre
“A stage setting is not a background; it is an environment” once said Robert Edmond Jones, a scenic, lighting and costume designer.
The Glove Theatre, located in the heart of Downtown Gloversville embodies that quote as it is a living environment for arts and entertainment.
Located at 42 N. Main St., the theatre currently offers a variety of programming from movies such as the weekly free showings that include fan favorites like “Alien” and “A Star to Remember,” to open mic nights such as the current “Vaudeville Thursdays,” to live performances such as “Blithe Spirit,” to concerts by bands such as The NoLaNauts, to community events such as “Trivia Night” and exhibits by Via Aquarium. These current offerings keep to the theatre’s tradition of being the civic venue that it was designed to be in 1914 by Utica-based architect Linn Kinne in the Classical Revival style.
According to its website, https://theglovetheatre.com/museum-history, the Schine brothers purchased the theater in 1920 and focused the local building as the flagship headquarters for Schine Enterprises, which at the height of its business, it was a “theater chain of 150 venues in five states. Innovations in theater equipment were first tested at the Glove Theatre before widespread distribution. In 1928, for example, the Glove Theatre was among the first in the nation to be equipped with sound.”
Unfortunately, the theatre had to shutter its doors for a brief time starting in the 1970s due to outside forces including Urban Renewal, but it found new life starting in the late 1990s when volunteers dedicated themselves to resurrecting the arts venue. Since then, The Glove Theatre has been growing new talent by hosting children’s productions such as this summer’s “The Lion King Kids” and the annual Glove Academy where middle and high school students write, direct, stage and act in original works including “Kampfire Stories” in 2021, “Bacchanalia '22”in 2022, and “Fairy Tales...Flipped” in 2023. This year’s participants will produce “The Necklace” in August 2024.
Nestled next door to the theatre is its museum that was lovingly put together by volunteers and it chronicles the history of the facility with many posters, sheet music, photos, and other memorabilia. It should be noted that Richard Samrov, who was once an usher at theater in his youth, donated his uniform to the museum and along with his wife Joanne helped craft the design of the repository. As The Glove Theatre noted, the spouses functioned as “Executive Director, Bookkeeper, and Secretary throughout some of the most tumultuous years of The Glove's modern history. Joann's beaming smile, quick wit, and incredible, encyclopedic knowledge of the history of The Glove Theatre and Gloversville were both impressive and entertaining. She was a fan of the arts and supported many events at The Glove Theatre” before her passing earlier this month.
An inclusive theatre, The Glove Theatre provides programming for all ages and continues to be a community asset that is worth checking out in Downtown Gloversville.
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