Stanley Theatre New Jersey

We ventured over to New Jersey, yes we crossed the Hudson River once again, this time going underneath it via rail tunnel and heading West.

This time we had to take PATH transit rather than the Metro Subway...we were leaving the island so it called for a new travel arrangement...

The theatre is a very short walk from the Journal Square station 

We were greeted with a very warm welcome sign

The Stanley Theater has been a fixture in New Jersey since the late 1920s. It was one of the largest movie theaters ever built in the United States. The theater had to close in 1978, but in 1983, Jehovah’s Witnesses rescued the historic theater from disrepair. The Witnesses have been using the theater as a venue for Bible education since reopening its doors in 1985.

The outside restoration work has been extra ordinary, apparently the brass on these doors had 16 coats of paint...so much work to restore it to original condition

We arrived just in time to join in a special lunch being served for the Spanish international delegates...we were invited to join their celebration...and what a celebration it was!!! There was food, singing, dancing, laughter and so much happiness...who couldn't be happy in a room full of witnesses dancing to the wonderful beats of Spanish music!

So much fun!!!! 

Afterwards we went on a tour of the entire theatre. They have stopped regular daily tours in the theatre now, but this was a special day organised for the Spanish speaking delegates who had attended the New Jersey international convention. We were so lucky to have turned up on the right day and at the right time.

We started the tour in the foyer under the great chandelier. Which, apparently, is worth more than the theatre....

This is a view from directly under the chandelier

On the floor below the chandelier, and a key feature of the foyer is a compass set with mosaic tiles

The other lighting in the Theater is also gorgeous...

This one shows the amazing detail on the ceiling...

There are also three bible based murals. They all depict themes with horses in them because horses were popular in renaissance art.

The four horsemen of the apocalypse 

Zechariah chapter 6

Jehu

The auditorium is spectacular. It seats 3197 on the ground floor and 1500 on the mezzanine level

From the mezzanine level the detail along the sides of the theatre is extraordinary.

It was a truly amazing experience to see this wonderful theatre. We have shown you some of its treasures here but we can do no justice to how extraordinary it is in real life...

To see a video on the renovation of Stanley Theatre go to jw.org and search for Stanley Theatre, two videos are available for viewing, along with a short article.