City Auditorium
Auditorium
1872 Vacant Lot
1882 Dr. George Mozee purchased Lots 65 and 66. His residence was here until he sold the property to the city of Geneva.
1914 The house purchased by the city of Geneva was sold to the cemetery association, which moved it to the cemetery grounds. The city would build a new city building to house the fire department, city clerk’s office, and an auditorium. The two-story brick building was constructed at a cost of $20,000.
1915 W. P. McCall was appointed manager of the Geneva City Auditorium. The first production was “The Dutch Detective.”
1915 The new Geneva City Auditorium was dedicated with a home talent play given to raise money for the purchase of a piano.
1916 The show “Birth of a Nation” was presented with all four performances drawing a full house. An orchestra accompanied the play. Both the Burlington and the Northwestern trains brought loads of people for the show.
1924 The auditorium was jammed full for a Ku Klux Klan meeting.
1934 The new curtain for the auditorium stage, purchased by the city council, was put in place.
1935 A new cyclorama (stage curtain) was installed in the city auditorium. Funds from the school faculty play were used for its purchase.
1936 The auditorium was crowded for the boxing matches sponsored by the Geneva American Legion.
1963 The city council opened the Geneva Theater here, installing the fixtures and equipment from the Rialto Theater, which had been at 948 G Street.
1963 The Geneva Grange, Geneva Lions Club, and the Chamber of Commerce furnished the labor when the Geneva Theater marquee was moved from Vaughn Fulton’s building on G Street to the city auditorium.
1964 The Geneva Theater operated in the city auditorium under the direction of Vaughn Fulton as a Chamber of Commerce project.
1970 The Geneva Theater closed due to lack of attendance.
1973 The restrooms were relocated. The ladies restrooms were moved to the old city offices, south of the lobby, and the men’s restrooms were moved north of the lobby.
1974 A young Geneva attorney, Dan Bryan, spearheaded a drive to pass a bond issue for the renovation of the Geneva Auditorium, which was inoperable due to deterioration. An $85,000 bond passed.
1975 Renovation of the Geneva Auditorium began by Oliva Construction Co.
1975 The Artists Guild spent many volunteer hours painting the elaborate trim of the interior of the Geneva Auditorium in preparation for the grand opening.
1975 A marquee was being erected for the soon-to-be open Geneva Theater. Charles Picard was the manager.
1980 The Geneva Theater closed.
1981 A group of volunteers, headed by Doug Merryman, reopened the movie theater in the auditorium. The name was changed to the Rialto II.
1982 The Geneva Arts Council in conjunction with the Nebraska Arts Council began scheduling performances in the city auditorium multiple times a year.
1987 A small group of individuals interested in preserving historic buildings began the process of collecting the necessary information to submit the Geneva City Auditorium as a candidate for recognition on the National Register of Historic Places.
1988 The city was notified that the Geneva City Auditorium was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.
1990 Rialto II installed a new marquee. The sign was purchased by the Fillmore County Cinema Association and the labor was donated by Geneva Welding and Supply.
2013 The Cinema Association sponsored fund raising of $55,000 to upgrade the seats on the main floor of the auditorium.
2014 The Geneva Arts Council spent $8,000 refurbishing the Knabe grand piano that was in the auditorium.
2015 The Geneva Arts Council sponsored a centennial concert consisting of local talent for the auditorium’s 100th anniversary.
2016 The stage curtains were replaced by the Cinema Association and the Geneva Arts Council and the city. The main curtain had been in place since 1934. The new one was a replica of the old one.
The auditorium continued to house the Cinema Association and various Geneva Arts Council events as of the last posting.