The Music Hall is nine bays wide by six deep. It is made of brick with alternating courses of limestone, a material also used for the hooded trim on the windows. The mansard roof found on many Second Empire buildings is pierced by several decorative corbeled brick chimneys. Below it is a bracketedcornice. The east facade is faced in green marble at street level, making it unusually decorative for a Second Empire building and one of the most ornate in Cohoes. Inside, the third and fourth stories host a 375-seat auditorium, with a balcony on the upper level. Much of the original interior furnishings and decor remains.
History
Two local businessmen, newspaper owner James Masten and miller William Acheson, partnered to build the Music Hall in 1874. Nichols and Halcott of nearby Albany designed and built it for a cost of $60,000. It opened with a performance of Dion Boucicault's London Assurance. They leased the spaceon the ground floors to stores and other businesses to provide extra income, starting with the local post office. Two years later the city's library rented some space on the second story. In 1878 Masten sold his interest to Mary Acheson for 25 cents, because he felt the local market was oversaturated. Performers who played the building over the years included Sarah Bernhardt, Buffalo Bill Cody, George M. Cohan, Jimmy Durante, Lillian Russell, John Philip Sousa, General Tom Thumb and then-Cohoes native Eva Tanguay. In 1880 the First National Bank moved into the first floor. By 1905 it had taken over ownership of the building, putting its name on the entablature at the roofline. They closed the theater after discovering one of the roof trusses was sagging. By the middle of the 20th century, as the city declined along with its textile industries and the Erie Canal, the Music Hall had begun to deteriorate and fall into disuse. It became city property for one dollar in 1969,. and was in danger of being demolished just before it was added to the Register. An extensive restoration allowed to reopen a year after its centenary, with another production of London Assurance. In 2002 it became the home of C-R Productions, which was committed to revitalize the theater and attract visitors to Cohoes by presenting quality theater and educational programs. To the former end, it has staged popular musicals like Chicago and Miss Saigon. C-R Productions ceased production of mainstage shows in 2015. The street-level area serves as the city's visitor center, with displays on the history of the textile industry in the city and information about historic sites and other local attractions. In 2015 the City took over control of the theater and it is now a venue for local, regional and international talent. It is currently managed by the Palace Performing Arts Center. Its programming features local groups and non-profit organizations, including partner theatre Park Playhouse's off season productions.
