The building is a Connecticut Historical Landmark that has been renovated as a live theater venue, the Legacy Theatre, which held its grand opening on April 23, 2021.
[citation needed] It was then home to the famous Parish Players, who, in collaboration with Lee Shubert, presented the pre-Broadway production of Death Takes a Holiday in the building in 1929.
Too Much Johnson was performed August 16–29, 1938, with the cast including Joseph Cotten, Edgar Barrier, George Duthie, Ruth Ford, Guy Kingsley, Howard Smith, Virginia Welles, Mary Wickes, Richard Wilson and Eustace Wyatt.
Their bodies are constructed of steel reinforced hardwood covered with hemp and canvas, with heads hand-carved out of solid walnut and painted with fine detail.
The great size and sheer presence of these puppets would make their world of history, fantasy, myth and mystery seem to come to life, while the characteristic puppet-like movements would simultaneously lend the play an air of unreality.