The Kings Theatre opened in 1929 in the Flatbush neighborhood as one of the five Loew’s ‘Wonder Theatres’ constructed in New York and New Jersey. It was designed by architecture firm Rapp & Rapp as an entertainment palace where films and vaudeville acts were presented amidst lavish interiors inspired by the Palace of Versailles and the Paris Opera House. The Theatre closed its doors to the public in 1977 and was acquired by the City of New York in 1983. In 2008, NYCEDC launched a competitive search for an entity to undertake a major restoration and renovation to restore the Theatre as an economic engine and cultural hub to the Flatbush neighborhood.
