Steinway Hall
Steinway Hall was an 11-story Chicago office building and performance venue associated with Steinway & Sons, later operating as a cinema before its demolition in 1970.
Last updated August 22, 2026
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Overview
Steinway Hall was a historic Chicago commercial and cultural building located at 64 East Van Buren Street. Built by the piano manufacturer Steinway & Sons, it opened in 1896 as an 11-story office building with an approximately 850-seat ground-floor theater. The project belonged to Steinway's broader tradition of establishing halls in major cities to display its pianos, host performances, and associate the company with musical culture. The building was designed by architect Dwight H. Perkins. Although its original institutional identity was musical, the property became significant for Chicago architectural history because its upper floors housed a group of influential architects beginning in the winter of 1896–97. Perkins shared the space with Robert C. Spencer, Frank Lloyd Wright, and Myron Hunt, while other architects—including Webster Tomlinson, Irving and Allen Bartlitt Pond, Adamo Boari, Walter Burley Griffin, and Birch Long—were also connected with the building. Wright retained an office there until approximately 1908. The gatherings of architects associated with the building became linked to the group later known as The Eighteen, a forum for professional and intellectual discussion that helped form part of the background to Chicago's Prairie School. The theater experienced repeated changes of operator, format, and name. It opened as the Steinway Music Hall, was known around 1900 as Ziegfeld Hall, and subsequently operated as the Kelly and Leon Opera House, Whitney Opera House, Central Music Hall, and Central Theatre. Its stage history included appearances by performers such as Sophie Tucker and Fatty Arbuckle, while the Whitney period also brought theatrical programming to the venue. In the 1910s it presented Shakespearean plays under the Central Music Hall name. During the 1920s, variations of the Central Theatre name reflected different lessees. The venue shifted from live performance to motion pictures in the 1930s. It became the Punch & Judy Theatre around 1930, briefly returned to the Central Theatre identity and live performances around 1931, and then resumed film exhibition as the Sonotone Theatre in 1934. Later names included Studio Theatre, Ziegfeld Theatre, and, from 1958, Capri Cinema. Near the end of its life, the cinema showed adult films and closed in the late 1960s. The building also served educational and commercial tenants. The Hobart M. Cable Piano Company maintained offices and warerooms there around 1904. In approximately 1925, the Chicago Musical College moved into the building, using three floors as student dormitories and listing 125 faculty members that year. The college remained until 1954, when it merged with Roosevelt University's School of Music and moved to the Auditorium Building. Steinway Hall was demolished in 1970. The site was subsequently incorporated into the development of the CNA Center, originally known as Continental Center III, a 44-story building completed in 1972. Steinway Hall is therefore remembered less as a continuing commercial brand than as a vanished Chicago landmark connecting Steinway's musical activities, early twentieth-century theater and cinema, music education, and the development of the Prairie School architectural movement.
History
Steinway Hall in Chicago opened in 1896 as an 11-story building developed by Steinway & Sons. Its ground floor contained an approximately 850-seat theater, while the rest of the building provided office and commercial space. The hall was part of Steinway's international practice of creating performance venues where the company could present music and showcase its pianos. Architect Dwight H. Perkins designed the Chicago building. The property soon acquired importance beyond Steinway's musical business. From the winter of 1896–97, the eleventh floor accommodated offices used by Perkins, Robert C. Spencer, Frank Lloyd Wright, and Myron Hunt. Wright continued to maintain an office there until about 1908. The building also became associated with a wider circle of Chicago architects, including Webster Tomlinson, Irving Pond, Allen Bartlitt Pond, Adamo Boari, Walter Burley Griffin, and Birch Long. Wright referred to a group of architects who gathered for meals and discussion as The Eighteen. Their activities formed part of the professional environment from which the Prairie School emerged, and Steinway Hall became one of the movement's notable early meeting points. The building's theater went through an unusually long sequence of identities. It opened as the Steinway Music Hall and was renamed Ziegfeld Hall around 1900, apparently during a lease associated with Florenz Ziegfeld Jr. It then operated as the Kelly and Leon Opera House and, by 1910, as the Whitney Opera House under B. C. Whitney. Performers associated with the Whitney period included Sophie Tucker and Fatty Arbuckle. By 1915, the venue had become Central Music Hall and presented Shakespearean plays. This theater should not be confused with the earlier Central Music Hall at State and Randolph Streets, which had been demolished in 1900. In 1923 the venue adopted the Central Theatre name, with variations reflecting successive lessees, including Minturn's Central Theatre, Barrett's Central Theatre, and Shubert's Central Theatre. Around 1930 it became the Punch & Judy Theatre and shifted to motion pictures. It briefly returned to the Central Theatre name and live performance around 1931, but in 1934 became the Sonotone Theatre. Later operators used the names Studio Theatre and Ziegfeld Theatre. In 1958 it became the Capri Cinema, which eventually showed adult films before closing in the late 1960s. Steinway Hall also housed other piano and educational activities. The Hobart M. Cable Piano Company maintained offices and warerooms there around 1904. The Chicago Musical College moved into the building around 1925. Its operation included three dormitory floors, and its 1925 faculty roster contained 125 names. The college remained until 1954, when it merged with Roosevelt University's School of Music and transferred to the Auditorium Building. The building was demolished in 1970. A new 44-story office tower, originally called Continental Center III and later known as the CNA Center, was built on the site between 1970 and 1972. The replacement structure became notable for its red exterior and prominent position in the Chicago skyline. Steinway Hall consequently survives as a historical subject rather than an operating venue, remembered for its connection to Steinway & Sons, Chicago theater and cinema, music education, and the city's early modern architectural culture.
- 1970
Building demolished
[1]Steinway Hall was demolished, ending the building's existence as a theater, cinema, office property, and music-education site.
- 1958
The theater becomes Capri Cinema
[1]The theater adopted the Capri Cinema name and remained a movie venue until its closure in the late 1960s.
- 1954
Chicago Musical College departs
[1]The college merged with Roosevelt University's School of Music and moved to the Auditorium Building.
- 1925
Chicago Musical College relocates to the building
[1]The college established educational operations and student accommodation in Steinway Hall.
- 1904
Hobart M. Cable Piano Company occupies space
[1]The Hobart M. Cable Piano Company maintained offices and piano warerooms in the building.
- 1896
Steinway Hall opens
[1]Steinway & Sons opened the 11-story Chicago building with a ground-floor theater initially called the Steinway Music Hall.
- 1896
Architects establish a major office cluster
[1]The eleventh floor began housing offices for Dwight H. Perkins, Robert C. Spencer, Frank Lloyd Wright, and Myron Hunt, later attracting a wider circle of Chicago architects.
Products and positioning
A Steinway & Sons-affiliated cultural and commercial venue that combined piano promotion, live performance, offices, music education, and later cinema use. Its historical importance also derives from its role as an early gathering place for architects associated with Chicago's Prairie School.
Concert and theater venue · 1896
Steinway Music Hall
The original approximately 850-seat ground-floor theater opened in 1896 as the Steinway Music Hall. It was intended to connect Steinway & Sons' piano business with public performance and musical presentation. Over its lifetime, the auditorium hosted stage productions, live performers, theatrical programs, motion pictures, and eventually adult films under a succession of names.
Commercial and cultural property · 1896
Steinway Hall office and showroom building
The 11-story building combined Steinway-related musical activity with offices and commercial tenancy. It supported piano-related showroom and wareroom functions, housed a notable group of architects on its upper floor, and later accommodated the Chicago Musical College. Its mixed-use character made it both a business property and a cultural landmark.
Brand decisions
1970
End of the Steinway Hall propertyOtherBackground
After the Chicago Musical College had left and the cinema had closed in the late 1960s, the historic building no longer operated as its original mixed-use cultural complex.
Action taken
The building and theater were demolished.
Aftermath
The site was redeveloped with the 44-story CNA Center, originally known as Continental Center III.
1930
Shift from live theater toward cinemaStrategyBackground
After decades of use for opera, theater, and other live performances, the auditorium entered a period of changing formats and operators.
Action taken
The venue adopted the Punch & Judy Theatre name around 1930 and began operating as a movie house, although it briefly returned to live performance around 1931.
Aftermath
The theater returned to film exhibition in 1934 as the Sonotone Theatre and later continued under additional names, including Capri Cinema.
Sources1 sources
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