Sedgwick Theater

The Sedgwick Theater, located at 7137 Germantown Ave in Philadelphia, is designed in the 1920s style of an art deco movie palace.

It was built during a movie revolution with the advent of sync sound and hosted silent films as well as talkies.

This perhaps explains the theater's design including a stage for live performance, as well as its large single screen.

Entering the theater through five large archways, the rake of the seats dropped about 15 feet to the screen.

However, by 2006, despite having brought the Philadelphia community programming for ten years, the condition of the theater had not improved, and the Sedgwick Cultural Center separated from it.

The price tag for a complete building restoration has been suggested to be US$10 to 12 million, not including the cost to create a business in the space which could make the Sedgwick self-sustaining.

[citation needed] Before 2010, the Sedgwick Theater was a community art space, with a gallery where the ticket booth was once located.

In May 2010, the Quintessence Theatre Group began renting the Sedgwick for a classical repertory troupe.