Peek inside the State Theatre

The State Theatre on Phillips Avenue in Downtown Sioux Falls is living up to their claim of being The Last Jewel in the Crown of Historic Downtown. Stephen Williamson gave us the Off Limits Sioux Falls tour and you won't believe what's in the basement!

The Grand Factor of The State Theatre

Restoration may be slower than you'd like, but they're doing it right. Everything is going back to the original detail and color. When will they open their doors or at least start using part of the building? Plans are certainly in place, but they will play their cards close to the chest for the moment.

The Creepy Factor of the State Theatre

It's seriously awe inspiring at the ground level and above. I could totally see a fun party on the rooftop. The creepiness comes in with those two tunnels in the basement! One of them used to go to the old Cataract Hotel, so the upper crust didn't have to get cold on their way to a show, and the celebrities in town for those notorious quickie divorces around the turn of the century could secretly arrive. The second tunnel starts underneath the building from the west part of the building, and apparently you could shimmy your way east all the way to under the stage and up to the ground level again. When I took the picture for the video, it was so dark, I didn't even know what (or who) would show up on that picture till I looked at in on the camera. That tunnel is so tight you have to turn sideways to get through...just the kind of creepy cool thing that makes a legend in Sioux Falls.

How you can be a part of the State Theatre

Money Bomb 2014 is a 1 day only Social Media Fundraising event September 19th, with a wrap up party at Icon Lounge starting at 7.