1027 Flatbush Ave
1929
C. W. Rapp & G. L. Rapp

The Kings Theatre was built at the height of the movie palace boom when theatre chains attracted audiences with luxurious and exotic environments. One of Loew’s five “Wonder Theaters” in the metropolitan area, it was meant to bring the grandness of the Times Square/ Midtown Manhattan Theater District to residential areas.

Designed in the French Renaissance Revival style, the 82-foot-tall three-story structure features ornamental terra cotta tiles on the façade, a large lobby with full-height semi-circular-arched openings and Corinthian pilasters and columns, and lavish classical ornamentation. The ceilings in the entrance, lobby, and auditorium areas are vaulted with French Baroque paintings.

Among the theaters built in the area in the 1920s, Kings Theatre was the grandest and served as a neighborhood landmark. It closed in 1977 and remained vacant until 2010 when it was completely renovated and reopened as a performing arts venue in 2015. It was listed on the National Register in 2012.