A Jewel on 2nd Avenue

She may not be as fancy, she may not be as talked about, she may be smaller than the others, she may even lack their fine acoustics, but the grand old gal of Seattle theaters is without a doubt the Moore, and her one-hundredth birthday is just around the corner. Tall and narrow, with less of the opulent architectural detail that came in subsequent years, the Moore is a nineteenth-century frontier theater in the truest sense. The elegant simplicity and charm of John Cort’s Seattle showcase exists today, much as it did on opening night, December 28, 1907. The Paramount and 5th Avenue may receive greater attention as survivors of Seattle’s theatrical heritage, but they haven’t a fraction of the cultural importance found in the Moore. Consider not only who trod the boards, but the audience as well, and the historical significance is staggering. The Moore has also remained in constant use for virtually the entire century.

When current management and lessee, Seattle Theater Group (STG), announced their fall schedule, December 28 was dark. The date is too close to the holidays I was told, and business is business. While disappointed, I suppose I can understand this reasoning. There is more than enough good news however. STG has conducted free tours of the Paramount on the first Saturday of each month for some time, and tours of the Moore on second Saturdays are now being offered. Over the past thirty years, I have spent more than a few hours at the Moore, but in all that time I had never seen the backstage area and dressing rooms, until Saturday morning. Along with the Paramount tours, this is one of the best free offerings in town and STG deserves tremendous thanks from the community-at-large. I was more than impressed with the level of historical research STG and their volunteers have undertaken, and the wealth of printed material available in the lobby. No one who has ever attended a show at the Moore, or has any interest in Seattle’s history should miss this tour.

STG has also announced several free events this fall to commemorate the anniversary, culminating in The Moore 100 Open House Celebration on Monday, December 10.

On-Stage Dressing Room #2
An arched doorway against the back wall leads to the on-stage dressing rooms, stacked along a narrow brick stairway. An adjoining wall was removed at some point, making rooms three and four at the top level a single larger space. Dressing room two has a lovely view of the loading dock. It absolutely blows my mind to imagine who has been here and what has taken place in this room over the past century. Everyone has a Moore story, what's yours? Love this place, and visit it often.