5/21/2009

in

After over $13 mil in reconstruction, a schedule of performers and an opening week celebration begin at the Lincoln Theatre.

Rebecca Toback

After $13 million of renovations, the Lincoln Theatre, which has housed acts like Sammy Davis, Jr. and Etta James, has reopened for performers to make their marks on the Columbus, Ohio stage.  
  
The theater which seats 566 people, has a large stage, an orchestra pit and state-of-the-art lighting and sound, 10 TV News reports. There will be a weeklong celebration beginning Monday to celebrate the theater. The Columbus Jazz Youth Orchestra will be performing at the event.  
  
The venue first opened in 1928 as the Ogden Theatre and Ballroom; its recent transformation was funded both privately and publicly. There will be free public tours of the theater from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Monday. Maurice Hines, Bobby "Blue" Bland, and Denyce Graves are some of the upcoming performers the theater will be housing.  
  
The reconstruction of the music hall took over one and a half years, and had a ribbon cutting Thursday with city officials and Franklin County government. Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman cut the ribbon on the new stage, which is larger than the old one, according to NBC4, in Columbus.