Strawbery Banke Presents
HISTORIC PORTSMOUTH #67

Live performances were the rage when the ornate Olympia Theatre opened on Vaughan Street in 1916. The painted asbestos safety curtain shows a view of Mount Olympus. Its proscenium arch encircled by gilded leaves offered serious competition to the nearby Music Hall. But vaudeville died quickly with the advent of "talkies". The Olympia showed films, closed in 1950 and has since been concerted to office space.