The Commodore Theatre Celebrates 25 Years of Excellence

The Commodore Theatre in Olde Towne Portsmouth, Virginia.

The Commodore Theatre will celebrate 25 years to the day that it re-opened as the restored Commodore Theatre with a new vision of first-run movies and fine dining, the first such cinema-eatery in the country.

The Commodore Theatre was recently named one of the "10 greatest dine-in theaters in America" in a Motion Picture Association of America publication (2014) and one of America's 7 Best Movie Theaters of Food Lovers," in a 2013 issue of Bon Appetit Magazine.

Originally built in 1945, the Commodore is listed on the National Registry of Historic Places and on the Virginia Landmarks Register, for it's architecture, decor and rich history.

The public is invited to stop by the theatre between noon and 5:00 p.m. on Sunday, December 21 to celebrate with friends of the theatre. Commemorative cakes and other refreshments will be available. A brief recognition ceremony will be held from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m..

The theatre will be showing National Lampoon's "Christmas Vacation," starting December 19 through December 24 which also premiered 25 years ago in 1989.

For more information, call the theatre at 757-393-4383 or visit the Commodore's website at www.commodoretheatre.com  

Tastes of Appalachia Features Regional Food and Music at the Commodore Theatre

Chef Susi Gott Seguret prepares foods of the Appalachia.

Saturday, May 3, 2014
12:45 - 3:00 pm
at the Commodore Theatre
421 High Street
Portsmouth VA.

Award winning chefs Dale Hawkins and Susi Gott Seguret will discuss approches to preparing foods of Appalachia with a multi-course lunch will be held at the Commodore Theatre located in Olde Towne Portsmouth, Virginia. Music about Appalachian food and drink will be performed by Dr. Katie Hoffman on vocals and Brett Tiller on the banjo. This event will highlight the exhibit "Changing Appalachia" at the Portsmouth Art & Cultural Center just across the Street.

Chef Dale Hawkins discusses foods of the Appalachia.

To make reservations or for more information please visit the Portsmouth Art & Cultural Center Gallery Shop or call 757-393-8453. Tickets are $10.00 for balcony seating (does not include lunch) and $45.00 in the dining area which includes lunch. Beverages are extra.

Here is a link to the article 'Taste of Appalachia' offers sampling of regional music and food at Portsmouth's Commodore Theatre written by Virginian-Pilot reporter Lia Russell: Taste of Appalachia.

An Enslaved Woman and her Dressmaker Daughter

April 24, 2014
At the Commodore Theater
421 High Street
Portsmouth, VA
(757) 393-6962
Doors open at noon
Lunch may be purchased from noon-12:45
Talk begins at 1:00 p.m.

Historian, Kathleen Curtis Wilson will tell the story of an exceptional African American family in Appalachia

Historian Kathleen Curtis Wilson

Virginia and explain what is known and not known about skilled enslaved women and the importance of new discoveries in the field of African American studies.  Her presentation includes photographs of textiles made by Lizzie Bolden, photographs of her mother and father, members of her family and other freed slaves living and working in Bath County.

Historians have long underestimated the importance of the skills that enslaved individuals possessed because there is no body of work to study.  That is especially true in Appalachia.  In the world of textiles and clothing, it is accepted that many skilled slave artisans spun thread and wove cloth, stitched slave clothing from coarse fabrics, did the fine (but tedious) finish quilting on their mistresses’ showpiece quilts, or were hired out as dressmakers, earning money for their masters and sometimes saving enough from their earnings to purchase freedom.  However, there is little physical evidence of these skills to support further scholarship.  Since slave-made textiles have traditionally remained with the master’s family, historians have had no way to authenticate the original maker of a quilt, bedcover, or other piece of cloth that has only a vague provenance.

Elizabeth Morris Bolden, Lizzie, lived in Warm Springs, VA all of her life.  She and her husband hand one

Lizzie's quilt, Warm Springs, Virginia

daughter, Alice.  What makes her story worthy of historical documentation are the textiles she leer behind, evidence of her skill as a seamstress and her status in the community.  Five textiles have passed from mother to daughter along with remembrances of Lizzie’s life and details of her sewing career.  At a time when African Americans in Appalachia had few opportunities for more than unskilled employment, Lizzie had her own business as a dressmaker for clients in the community. Lizzie’s great granddaughter, Perlista Y. Henry, will be at the presentation to answer questions at the end of the talk.

Kathleen Curtis Wilson is a Fellow at the Virginia Foundation of Humanities, Charlottesville, VA.  A renowned authority on Appalachian crafts, Wilson is craft section editor for the Encyclopedia of Appalachia. As an Appalachia textile historian, Wilson has been documenting, photographing, and writing about regional craft traditions for more than 25 years.  Currently she is working on her first novel, The Fabric of Wishful Thinking.

The talk is being held in conjunction with the exhibit Changing Appalachia: Custom toCutting Edge at the Portsmouth Art & Cultural Center. This program is sponsored in part by the Commodore Theater, Portsmouth Art & Cultural Center, the African-American Historical Society of Portsmouth and the Thomson Family Foundation of Minnesota.

12 Historic Squares of High Street- Olde Towne Portsmouth, Virginia

History of High Street
Portsmouth was founded as a town in 1752, on 65 acres of land on the shores of the Elizabeth River. The town was founded by William Crawford, a wealthy merchant and ship owner who at various times had held office as the Norfolk County presiding court judge, high sheriff, militia lieutenant colonel and representative to the House of Burgesses. Because of his militia service, he is frequently referred to as "Colonel Crawford." The 65 acres were part of Colonel Crawford's extensive plantation and were constituted as a town by an enabling act of the General Assembly of Virginia.

Portsmouth gets its name from the English naval port of Portsmouth, England. The town was laid out checkerboard style with 122 half-acre lots around its town square at High and Court streets. Streets were organized in a grid pattern with street widths alternating between 32, 50 and 100 feet. Each block or square was named for noted Virginians, Englishmen, or places in England or the United States.
Streets were named similarly. High Street was named for the main commercial corridor in Portsmouth, England. It is 100 feet wide, with two narrow parallel streets of 32-foot widths (Queen and King streets), located to the north and south. Narrower streets served as alleys for High Street, facilitating the access to commercial buildings from the rear.

Towne Square historic marker on High street.

Still standing is the original downtown intersection that the city's founder, Col. William Crawford, dedicated to public use -- one corner each for a church, a market, a courthouse, and a jail. In fact, Trinity Episcopal Church on the southwest corner -- founded in 1762 -- still rings its bells across the street from the 1846 Courthouse that now serves as a museum. With six districts listed on the Virginia Landmarks Register and the National Register of Historic Places, Portsmouth is a history lover's paradise.


Walking Tour
If you head west on High Street, you’ll find shops, restaurants, and museums. The Children’s Museum of Virginia and the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame face each other on opposite sides of High Street, offering fun exhibits and interactive activities for people of all ages.

Commodore Theatre

At 421 High Street, you’ll come across the Commodore Theatre. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places and Virginia Landmarks Register, this old-fashioned theater was built in 1945 and was at the time considered the best-equipped theater in Hampton Roads. Today, the Commodore Theatre has been meticulously restored and continues to be a popular place to catch the latest films.
After checking out the theater, head back east on High Street to the corner of Court Street and High Street, where the city’s founder created a town square. In the original layout for Portsmouth, these four corners were designated for a church, a market, a courthouse and a jail.
On the northwest corner, you’ll see an imposing Greek Revival building, surrounded by a wrought-iron fence and nearly hidden behind the massive oak trees that shade its courtyard. Built in 1846, it served as the Norfolk County Courthouse until 1960. Now it is home to the Courthouse Galleries, an art museum with two spacious galleries of ever-changing exhibits. From the original hand-colored lithographs of John James Audubon to the 17th-century engravings that depict some of the earliest images of Virginia Indians, the Courthouse Galleries museum continually strives to promote a greater appreciation and understanding of the arts.

A Tour of the 12 Merchant Squares of Historic High Street

Colonel Crawford leads a tour up High Street.

Heading West from the Elizabeth River to Effingham Street.

Bloomsberry Square- bounded by Crawford, King, Middle and High Streets- named for Bloomsbury, a district of London, England.

Market Square- bounded by Middle, King, Court and High Streets. In 1752 when Colonel William Crawford established the town of Portsmouth he designated part of this square for a market, hence the name, although a market was never erected at this location.

Church Square- bounded by Court, king, Dinwiddie and High Streets. When William Crawford, founder of Portsmouth, laid out the street plan in 1752, he designated the intersection of High Street and Court Street as the town center and set aside space for a parish church. In 1761, when the Vestry of Trinity Church was formed with Crawford as a member, the original church building comprised most of what is now the nave.

Dinwiddie Square- bounded by Dinwiddie, King, Washington and High street. It was named for Robert Dinwiddie (1693-1770), lieutenant-governor of Virginia, 1751-1758.

Cheshire Square- bounded by Washington, King, Green and High Streets. It was probably named for the English County of Cheshire.

Montgomery Square- bounded by Green, King, Effingham and High Streets. It may have been named after Robert Montgomery (1736-1775), brigadier general in Continental Army who was killed leading the assault on Quebec, or it may have been named after the Herbert family, hereditary Earls of Montgomery.

Heading East from Effingham Street on High Street towards the river.

Washington Square- bounded by Green, High, Effingham and Queen Streets. It was named after George Washington (1732-1799), commander–in-chief of Virginia troops, 1775, and of all Continental troops, 1775, first President of the United States.

Anderson-Wright at Devonshire Square.

Devonshire Square- bounded by Washington, High, Green and Queen Streets. Named after the English County of Devonshire.

Oxford Square- bounded by Dinwiddie, High, Washington and Queen Streets. Named after the well known street in London, England.

Prison Square- bounded by Court, High, Dinwiddie, and Queen Streets. It was so named because Crawford in 1752 had designed part of this square for the erection of a prison.

Courthouse Square- bounded by Middle, High, Court and Queen Streets. Crawford designated part of this same square for the erection of a court house, hence the name Court House Square.

Golden Square- bounded by Crawford, High, Middle and Queen Streets.

Whether coming to visit or an afternoon or an extended stay, historic Olde Towne Portsmouth offers a break from the ordinary. Olde Towne offers
superb shopping and exquisite dining along the High Street corridor
that makes up the 12 historic squares laid out in 1752 by Col. William 
Crawford, the city's founder. Visit Olde Towne's fine antique shops, 
remarkable specialty stores and sophisticated art galleries. Dine in
Portsmouth's exceptional selection of fine restaurants, cafes, bistros and 
pubs for a delectable experience. 
The merchants and restaurant here in Olde Towne are committed to
making your visit as memorable as it is rewarding, showing your that the 
heart of our quaint historic seaport is based on the enduring distinction of 
fine customer service.