Only months after opening contractor John H. Findorff was hired to add a balcony and theater boxes, raising capacity to nearly 500, plus a second ticket window to accommodate the many patrons.

[10][11] Before celebrating their first year the Biederstadt brothers were already seeking to acquire theaters in La Crosse, Winona and Minneapolis,[12] as well as making an offer on Madison's Fuller Opera House.

The types of performances staged were typical of the vaudeville era, including all manner of singers, dancers and musicians, ethnic comedians, magicians, minstrel shows, hypnotists, Asian acrobats and live animal acts ranging from dogs to seals to lions.

In July 1912, Jay Sherwood and F. J. McWilliams, operators of Madison's Grand and Fair Play theaters, gained control of the Majestic, renovating and re-opening it as a movie house on September 14.

[17] Showing first-run releases from the Universal Film Company,[18] the theater was operated by a succession of managers including William M. Fursman, Hugh Flannery,[19] Archie M. Cox,[20] and George B. Thompson.

[22][23] Facing competition from Madison's newer movie houses, Fischer renovated the theater by switching from coal to oil heating, installing a new ventilation system and moving the projectionist booth to the top of the balcony.

[30] In April 1921, Fischer was applauded for presenting the Cosmopolitan picture The Inside of the Cup after it was lambasted in a Chicago Tribune editorial and had been refused as "undesirable" by A. P. Desormeaux, manager of Madison's Strand Theater.

[31] In 1924, a Madison policewoman sought to halt the Majestic from presenting Bell's Hawaiian Revue, declaring the act "detrimental to public morals" due to the brevity of the hula costumes.

In April 1930, Michalson was threatened with revocation of the theater's license by Mayor Albert G. Schmedeman for showing a movie without first getting approval from Madison's film censorship committee.

Michalson's attorney (and future Wisconsin congressman) Harry Sauthoff criticized the body for lax supervision and for allowing "hotter" films be shown in other theaters.

During a hearing concerning the oversale of bonds invested in the Orpheum, Strand and Parkway theaters, Desormeaux proposed to manage those houses plus the Majestic to pay off the bondholders, but nothing came of his plan.

[38] As World War II began, Desormeaux strengthened the Majestic's ties to the community through charitable actions such as offering free passes to old age pensioners[39] and donating a day's box office receipts to the USO.

[44] As a Warner house the Majestic was run by a variety of managers including Wayne Berkely,[45] Roland Krause,[46] R. O. Jensen, Robert Tauscher,[47] James McCarthy,[48] Ollie G. Thompson,[49] Dennis Finkler[50] and Marian Aasen.

He then leased the house to Parallax (later Landmark) Theatres of Los Angeles, a national chain of repertory cinemas that was founded by several former University of Wisconsin students.

As the city's only art house cinema, it cultivated a fiercely loyal patronage that appreciated the herbal tea, cider and fresh popcorn with real butter for sale at its concessions stand.

During a 1983 appearance to benefit Madison Repertory Theatre, film critic Roger Ebert called the Majestic "a temple of art and sacred to me.

As owner of the building 20th Century Theaters sought to continue independent films at the Majestic and installed their district manager Jerry Fladen to oversee operations.

When the Majestic closed with its final feature Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels on March 28, 1999, it had been Wisconsin's oldest continually operating theater.

Doane had bought the 71-year-old Orpheum Theatre (with the attached Stage Door Theater) a year earlier and installed a restaurant and bar in the lobby, making him the operator of the last three commercial movie screens in downtown Madison.

Admitting publicly that he may lose money on the Majestic venture, he confessed to sentimental feelings about the theater and believed it could return to its former art house glory.

[60] After his plan to develop an entertainment complex on East Washington Avenue fell through, restaurateur Nick Schiavo purchased the Majestic from Fritz for $718,000,[61] contingent on his ability to secure the site's first liquor license.

Flashing lights were installed in the ornate gold proscenium arch and the DJ booth was the theater's original art deco concessions stand.

By 2004, the club became primarily a hip hop venue, and the weekend crowds of hundreds that spilled out into the street at closing time often resulted in fistfights and smashed windows.

After Schiavo declared he was not responsible for what happened in the street, neighboring businesses withdrew their support, claiming the club was making their customers feel unsafe.

'"[65] Despite the Schiavos announcing they planned to sell the Majestic, in September 2006 Madison police attached onerous conditions to the club's liquor license, including lowering the capacity to 200 and requiring one uniformed security guard for every thirty patrons.

Sharing an interest in running a music venue of their own, they re-opened as the Majestic Theatre on September 29, 2007 with a concert by Mandy Moore and Ben Lee.

The theater has also hosted vaudeville and burlesque shows, political rallies, "Brew & View" film nights, live concerts on King Street as well as weddings, church services and other events.