Wednesday, April 1, 2009
The Sun Theater in Saint Louis was built just prior to WWI in 1913 as the Victoria Theater. It has undergone several name-changes throughout the years, becoming a Jazz club and even an X-rated movie theater, until eventually obtaining its current designation as the Sun. It has been abandoned since its last occupants, the Faith Tabernacle, left in 1981.
Crumbling from the inside out, full of pigeon excrement and overall badly deteriorated, it would be no small feat to restore the interior of the building. It has obviously been horribly neglected for a long time, but considering that the facade of the building is still maintained-to the extent that the sign is still lit up at night, we just weren't expecting it to be so trashed inside. Restoration is a formidable challenge for a building in this state of internal disrepair. Additionally, it is surrounded by some strong competition, most notably the Fox Theater and Powell Symphony Hall, both of which are just around the corner.
Update: Good news for once; The Sun Theater has been completely renovated since these photos were taken. I did not see that one coming.
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I was just curious about this theater. It's not the Sun is it?? I've walked around that building a million times trying to find a way in...
If this is in fact the Sun, it makes me terribly sad to see that it's in such bad condition.
If you have a minute just to let me know whether or not it's the sun, you can email at nicole.dalton@gmail.com
Thanks. :)