Ansonia Theatre, Wadesboro

The Ansonia Theatre is now open as a community theater and venue for musical, poetic and other theater productions.
A combination movie and vaudeville theater, the Ansonia Theatre was built in 1925 and for decades served as the cultural center for Anson county. Even as late as the '50s and early '60s, the Ansonia was still showing regular movies with local bands performing after the late show on weekends. Then as television and mall cinemas gained a stronghold in American culture and as people became more mobile, the Ansonia, like most movie theaters in small towns, eventually closed. Although several attempts were made to reopen it, there was no way it could compete with larger cinemas.
The Ansonia is located in the historic business district of Uptown Wadesboro and is included in the area listed on the National Register of Historic Places. All citizens of Anson County can be proud of its rich cinema and vaudeville past.
Anson County leaders long recognized that this grand old facility could become the center of cultural events and spark positive growth in the arts for the whole county. The Ansonia Theatre renovation was completed in the Spring of 2011. The theater is now being used as a facility for local and regional musical and theatrical productions. The Anson County Arts Council will be presenting or sponsoring numerous special events throughout the year for both children and adults. The Ansonia is also available for rental as a performing arts theater and community auditorium.