Bloomington (Monroe County, Indiana) Evening World, December 29, 1928, p. 5.
SPENCER TO OPEN NEW THEATRE MONDAY
Monday night, New Year's Eve, E. M. Viquesney, Spencer sculptor, will open
his new $45,000 playhouse, The Tivoli Theatre, on North Washington Street.
The opening program will mark a period in the growth of Spencer and the
auditorium and balcony is expected to be filled to overflowing Monday night.
Dr. O. A. Noland, president of the Chamber of Commerce, will give the speech
of welcome Monday night at the opening performance, and Mr. Viquesney
probably will be called on for a few remarks.
The exterior of the theatre is in light buff stucco in Spanish design with
outside balconies and color and trimmings in buff, green and purple. The
interior blends through a beautiful lobby in cream stucco decorated with
gold grilles over the advertising niches, polychrome lighting fixtures into
a long curved foyer, lighted with soft amber lights in perforated metal
brackets. Everything to appeal to the comforts of its patrons is offered
here. Large, soft and luxurious davenports, deep carpets on the floors,
beautiful gold and red drapes on the auditorium entrances, and restrooms for
both ladies and gentlemen. From this foyer two heavily carpeted stairways
lead to two lodges seating 25 people each.
Entering the auditorium from the foyer, one is struck with a scene of
unusual beauty. An Italian garden in weathered garden walls, broken by
brown stone pillars and these capped with large marble vases filled with
flowers and foliage through which many colored lights cast a glow against a
dark blue ceiling leaving the impression that one is looking far up into a
night sky. Niches in the garden wall look through into deep foliage of the
garden beyond and in some of these openings hang flower baskets heavy with
ferns and vines while in the two central niches sit life-size figures of a
boy and a girl playing on a harp and mandolin. The tops of the garden wall
are broken with graceful balustrades and leading on down toward the stage
are two large bronze gates and just beyond these are the castellated organ
chambers with ornate gold grilles flanked by twisted columns and light
balustrades. Over each organ grill stretches a light awning of green and
silver. -Spencer World