RPI Playhouse
Introduction
The RPI Playhouse building is most notably the home of the RPI Players, a student-run group specializing in performing arts and theatre production [3] [5].
History
Old Gymnasium Beginning in May 1883, students filed a petition for the construction of a suitable gymnasium for their needs. In 1884, once the issue was petitioned for again, a plot of land on the south side of Broadway was purchased by the board of trustees [1].
Upon this land, a two-story brick building trimmed with stone and terracotta was constructed. The building was eighty-feet by forty-feet and cost $20,000 [4]. Half of the funding was contributed by alumni, students, trustees, and Troy residents. The remaining cost was covered by institute funds [1].
The first story of the building had a reception room, a dressing room, showers, and a bowling alley [1]. The second story had a main hall with thirty-feet of floor-to-ceiling space, outfitted with presumably the most current gymnastic equipment for the time [4]. An elevated running track and spectator gallery surrounded this main hall [1].
The building opened March 11, 1887 and was used as a gymnasium until 1912 when the '87 gymnasium opened in November of that year [1] [4].
The building was demolished in 1966 [1].
15th Street Lounge
References
[1] https://archives.rpi.edu/index.php/institute-history/building-histories/old-gymnasium
[2] https://archives.rpi.edu/institute-history/building-histories/15th-street-lounge-rpi-playhouse
[3] http://www.players.rpi.edu/index
[4] https://archives.rpi.edu/blog/2013/12/03/back-down-the-hill