Mayfield Theatre Building, The

The story

Written by AI from this property's National Register nomination and the record above; every sentence is checked against its sources before it appears here. Corrections: privacy@treealive.com

The Mayfield Theatre Building is a theater at 12300 Mayfield Rd. in Cleveland, Cuyahoga County. It was designed by architect Dominic R. Cefaratt and built in 1922-1923 in the Commercial Style.

Why it's listed

It was listed in the National Register in 2013 under criterion A, with local significance in entertainment and recreation. The nomination's period of significance runs from 1922 to 1959, reflecting the theater's construction and the end of the Mastandrea family's involvement with it that year.

Physical character

The building has brick walls on a brick and concrete foundation, a synthetic rubber roof, and a wood storefront. Inside, it retains a terrazzo floor, Ionic capitals, chandeliers, a proscenium, fly space and a projection booth. The marquee survives, though the original blade sign was blown down by Hurricane Sandy in 2012, and rooftop additions were built at the rear apartment around 1980.

Historical context

Michele and Christina Mastandrea built the theater, which served the neighborhood's Italian community as a movie house through its period of significance. It closed in 1969 over the threat of a race riot, reopened in 1970 as the Old Mayfield Theatre and again in 1975 as the New Mayfield Repertory Cinema, and closed permanently in 1985.