Live Entertainment
Reg Lenna Plays Host To Many Events
People are in line to get into The Reg Lenna Center for a sold-out 10,000 Maniacs 40th Anniversary show.
From left 10,000 Maniacs lead singer and violinist, Mary Ramsey, bassist Steve Gustafson, and keyboardist Dennis Drew. P-J photo by Michael Zabrodsky
People are in line to get into The Reg Lenna Center for a sold-out 10,000 Maniacs 40th Anniversary show.
From left 10,000 Maniacs lead singer and violinist, Mary Ramsey, bassist Steve Gustafson, and keyboardist Dennis Drew. P-J photo by Michael Zabrodsky
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Editor's Note: This is the first in a series of stories commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Palace Theater, which opened in February 2023 and eventually became the Reg Lenna Civic Center.
As a live enteratinment venue, The Reg Lenna Center For The Arts sets itself apart because it can accomodate many types of events.
Care has been taken to make sure that every detail is perfect, and performers on stage, behind the curtain, are ready to welcome patrons.
That's what happened in May 2022 as 10,000 Maniacs performed at the Reg to celebrate the band's 40th anniversary.
Steve Gustafson, bassist of 10,000 Maniacs, said that the City of Jamestown and the Reg are big parts of the band's success. The band played a short video entitled Jamestown My Home Town before starting to perform at that show, and the video was evidence that band pays homage to its roots.
Gustafson said the band was excited to play at The Reg.
"The theater has a special place in our hearts. It's played a big part in my life," Gustafson said.
Before being known as The Reg Lenna Center for The Arts, it was formerly known as The Palace Theater. Gustafson recalled watching movies there as a child, being on the center's Board of Governors, writing and recording songs there, shooting the band's first MTV video on that stage and having them (the Center) as a landlord when he and Drew owned Stage Left Restaurant, which was located next door.
That concert was delayed a year, but according to the band's pamphlet that was available at the show, 2021 marked the 40-year anniversary of the inception of 10,000 Maniacs. Founded in Jamestown, in 1981, the band has weathered a few personnel changes and is still anchored by four out of six original members: Gustafson, keyboardist Dennis Drew, guitarist John Lombardo, and drummer Jerry Augustyniak. Founding lead singer, Natalie Merchant left the band in 1993 to pursue a solo career and was replaced by back-up singer, Mary Ramsey who proved to be a natural fit for the band vocally and added another dimension to the group with her prowess on violin and viola, the pamphlet said. Guitarist and founding member Robert Buck passed away in 2000 and was replaced by Jeff Erickson, Buck's close friend and member of the jam-band Zeta Cauliflower.
"We worked out songs for just about every album on that stage," Drew said in the pamphlet. "We shot our first MTV video there in 1985. We recorded demos for Our Time in Eden there in 1992."
On Feb. 5 The Reg, as it is known throughout the area, began a yearlong celebration of the Palace Theater's 100th anniversary.
"So everything's about building anticipation for what you're about to see. And whether it's a movie or a live event, you know, it doesn't start until it starts. We've kind of conditioned people to wait for that -- to anticipate the audio cue, or the person who comes out introduces the show, or that first image that you see on a screen," said Len Barry, marketing director.
The Palace Theater opened on Feb. 5, 1923 with a program featuring live music, public officials and a screening of the Lionel Barrymore film, A Face in the Fog. The theater initially operated as a vaudeville house, with Nikitas Dipson purchasing it in 1926, adding more movie showings. It showcased films and live events through 1956. That year saw Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz return to Jamestown to premiere their film Forever Darling at the theater.
After 25 years of showing films exclusively, the Palace had fallen into disrepair. After a noted solo concert by Harry Chapin in 1981, community members began the process of raising funds to restore the theater. The Palace Civic Center presented live performances for nearly a decade, reopening fully after it was restored in 1990. It was renamed the Reg Lenna Civic Center, honoring Reginald and Elizabeth Lenna - who provided a generous financial gift to complete the renovations. The theater continues to be the focus of programming at Reg Lenna Center for The Arts with over 60 films and 30 live events presented annually.