The Irvington Theater Is Back In Business

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After five years, the village's historic Town Hall Theater comes alive again

October 5, 2024

By Shana Liebman–

After nearly five years, the 122-year-old Irvington Theater will reopen this fall. It’s a momentous occasion that many people, including myself (a member of the Irvington Theater Commission), have eagerly anticipated since its closure in 2020.

Here’s the inside scoop: The historical theater is not only back in business, it’s banging. A thorough renovation updated the look and feel of the space, including the refurbished lobby and dressing rooms, a new color scheme, and custom carpet. The sound and lighting systems are upgraded, and a new HVAC system means that the theater can be open year-round. In other words, it was worth the wait.

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The Fall Season

And we are celebrating, beginning with the Irvington Theater Open House on October 26 (2:00-4:00 p.m.) — an opportunity to check out the theater’s new look. The non-ticketed event includes free refreshments and live music by multi-instrumentalist Irvington resident Miyuki Furtado.

On Saturday, November 9, the theater will host “Laugh Out Loud: A Night of Comedy to Celebrate Irvington Theater’s Grand Reopening,” headlined by comedian Lenny Marcus (The Late Show with David Letterman, The Daily Show). The lineup includes Ophira Eisenberg (NPR’s Ask Me Another, The Late Late Show), Mike Feeney (The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, Last Call with Carson Daly), and Erin Jackson (Late Night with Seth Meyers, CONAN). (Tickets start at $35 and are on sale now at www.irvingtontheater.com.)

“I am extremely excited to open our doors up to the public again so they can see all the work that has gone on during our closure,” says the theater’s manager Gregory Allen. “The excitement of our staff and theater commission is palpable as we work towards our Open House and Grand Reopening. So many new people have moved to our Village since we’ve been physically closed, and we can’t wait to share with them all that the Irvington Theater has to offer.”

The theater will also welcome back its arts partners this fall, with productions like Clocktower Players’ The Color Purple and Broadway Training Center’s Les Misérables. In 2025, the Irvington Theater will once again host the beloved As iFF (All Shorts Irvington Film Festival) and the Arts Incubator Short Play Fest.

Behind the Scenes

Irvington Theater closed its doors in 2020 due to the pandemic, triggering a multi-year pivot to a series of online and in-person, offsite events known as #IrvingtonAnywhere. When restrictions on in-person gathering began to ease, the doors to Irvington Theater remained closed; an interior facelift was well underway, which included replacing the audio console, upgrading the lighting and sound systems, refreshing the lobby and dressing rooms, and re-gold leafing the entire proscenium arch.

At that point, it had been more than 40 years since the theater had undergone a significant renovation, and the decades-old ventilation system couldn’t meet the standards of the moment. In 2021, thanks to the help of the Irvington Village Board, State Senator Andrea Stewart-Cousins, and the NYS Assembly, a plan to install a state-of-the-art HVAC system was approved, kicking off another major construction project that will allow the theater to operate year-round for the first time in its history.

Learn more about the Irvington Theater’s reopening and upcoming season at www.irvingtontheater.com.

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