A Night on the Town

Yesterday was a beautiful, sunny, autumn day.  Late in the afternoon, Alejandro and I drove to downtown Cleveland.

 

Even though Terminal Tower is no longer the tallest skyscraper in Cleveland, it is the symbol of the city.  The tower is 52 stories tall, and, when it was built in the late 1920s, it was the tallest building in the world outside of New York City.

 

 

 

On the western edge of downtown Cleveland are several blocks known as the Warehouse District.  The area had fallen into disrepair, but by the 1980s the Victorian buildings were being restored, and the district was added to the National Register of Historic Places.  The old warehouses were converted into office and residential space, and the area became a "hot spot" for fine dining.  I had made reservations for one of the district's restaurants, Mallorca.  Mallorca specializes in Spanish and Portuguese inspired dishes.  We had a delicious supper there.

 

 

 

 

After supper we drove a short distance to downtown Cleveland's Playhouse Square, another one of the city's gems.  Back in the 1920s, when opulent movie theaters were the norm, the Palace, the State, the Ohio and the Allen Theaters opened along a short stretch of Euclid Avenue.  Just across the street was the Hanna Theater.  By the late 1960s all of the theaters except the Hanna had been closed, and the once beautiful interiors fell into decay.  In the 1970s, when plans to raze the Ohio and the State Theaters were announced, there was a public outcry.  The Playhouse Square Foundation was created to acquire and restore the theaters to their former splendor.  Today, Playhouse Square is the second largest performing arts center in the United States, second only to Lincoln Center in New York City.  In 1999 the Foundation acquired the Hanna Theater across the street. The success of Playhouse Square was spawned the growth of hotels and restaurants in the neighborhood.

 

 

 







 Just this year archways over the streets leading into the district were built, and, at the intersection of Euclid Avenue and East 14th Street the world's largest outdoor chandelier was installed.

 

 

I had tickets for us to see a production of "Les Miserables" performed by the Great Lakes Theater, a repertory troupe that has its new home in the Hanna Theater.  This was Alejandro's second visit to Playhouse Square.  On a previous trip, I took him to see "The Lion King".

 

 

 

 

The show was excellent.  It was another great Cleveland experience for Alejandro!