The Bonstelle Theatre is a theater operated by
Wayne State University
Wayne State University (WSU) is a public research university in Detroit, Michigan. It is Michigan's third-largest university. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 350 programs to nearly 25,000 ...
, and located at 3424
Woodward Avenue
A woodward is a Game warden, warden of a wood. Woodward may also refer to:
Places
;United States
* Woodward, Iowa
* Woodward, Oklahoma
* Woodward, Pennsylvania, a census-designated place
* Woodward Avenue, a street in Tallahassee, Florida, which b ...
(the southeast corner of Woodward and Eliot) in the
Midtown Woodward Historic District
The Midtown Woodward Historic District is a historic district located along Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. Structures in the district are located between 2951 and 3424 Woodward Avenue, and include structures on the corner of Charlotte St ...
of
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...
,
Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
.
[Temple Beth-El](_blank)
from Detroit 1701.org. It was built in 1902 as the Temple Beth-El, and was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in 1982.
As of 2019, the University plans to decommission the theatre and lease it to a private developer for inclusion in a boutique hotel.
Construction
When Rabbi
Leo M. Franklin
Leo Morris Franklin (March 5, 1870 – August 8, 1948)
(Franklin's entry) in the Archives of the Temple ...
first began leading services at Detroit's
Temple Beth El in 1899, he felt that the construction of a new temple building on Detroit's "Piety Row" stretch of Woodward would increase the visibility and prestige of Detroit's Jewish community.
Accordingly, in October 1900, the congregation held a special meeting at which it was decided to build a new temple. The congregation purchased a site for the new temple in April of the next year and engaged member
Albert Kahn to design the structure. Groundbreaking took place on November 25, 1901, with the ceremonial cornerstone laid on April 23, 1902. The first services were held in the chapel on January 24, 1903, and the formal dedication was held on September 18–19 of the same year.
Building
The temple is a
Beaux-Arts structure influenced primarily by Roman and Greek temples. Sobocinski cites the
Pantheon
Pantheon may refer to:
* Pantheon (religion), a set of gods belonging to a particular religion or tradition, and a temple or sacred building
Arts and entertainment Comics
*Pantheon (Marvel Comics), a fictional organization
* ''Pantheon'' (Lone S ...
in
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
for comparison. There is a prominent dome over the main area of the temple, with gabled wings on the north and south. A pedimented extension on the front once extended into a porch; the front section of the building was lost when the city widened Woodward Avenue in 1936.
Later use
When the Temple Beth El congregation constructed
a new building farther north along Woodward in 1922, they sold the building at Woodward and Eliot to
Jessie Bonstelle
Jessie Bonstelle (born Laura Justine Bonesteel; November 18, 1871 – October 14, 1932) was an American theater director, actress, and drama company manager. Encouraged by her mother, she sang and performed in the theater from a young age; she w ...
for $500,000.
Bonstelle hired architect
C. Howard Crane to convert the building into a theater, and named the resulting building the Bonstelle Playhouse.
In 1928, the Bonstelle Playhouse became the Detroit Civic Theatre, and in the 1930s, the Mayfair Motion Picture Theater. In 1951, Wayne State University rented the facility as a performance space for its theater company, and purchased it outright in 1956, renaming it the Bonstelle Theatre in honor of Jessie Bonstelle.
The University continues to use the theatre through Spring 2020 after which it will lease the facility to The Roxbury Group for renovation and redevelopment. The University will continue to produce in the
Hilberry Theatre
The Hilberry Theatre was a 534-seat auditorium located at 4743 Cass Avenue in Midtown Detroit, Michigan. Created in 1963, the Hilberry served as the theatre space for approximately 40-50 graduate students pursuing degrees in theatre fields at the ...
and until the completion of the Gateway Performing Arts Center which is scheduled to open in Fall of 2021.
Gallery
File:BethEl1905.jpg, Temple Beth El, c. 1905
File:Jessie Bonstelle 001.jpg, Jessie Bonstelle in 1908
File:Temple Beth-El (Bonstelle Theatre).jpg, View of the theater from the south, with the name visible near the roof of the stagehouse
See also
*
History of the Jews in Metro Detroit
Jews have been living in Metro Detroit since it was first founded, and have been prominent in all parts of life in the city. The city has a rich Jewish history, but the Jewish community has also seen tensions and faced anti-Jewish backlash. Today ...
References
Further reading
*
*
External links
Bonstelle Theatre - Wayne State University these include photographs c. 1903 - 1922 of both the interior and exterior of the structure.
{{National Register of Historic Places listings in Wayne County, Michigan
Wayne State University
Theatres in Detroit
Midtown Detroit
Woodward Avenue
Former synagogues in the United States
Jews and Judaism in Detroit
Synagogues completed in 1902
Historic district contributing properties in Michigan
National Register of Historic Places in Detroit
Properties of religious function on the National Register of Historic Places in Michigan
Event venues established in 1922
1922 establishments in Michigan
Albert Kahn (architect) buildings
Beaux-Arts architecture in Michigan
Former religious buildings and structures in Michigan
Synagogue buildings with domes