Raising the theater Rex

When two men in the music business couldn’t find a good venue in Pittsburgh, they solved the… When two men in the music business couldn’t find a good venue in Pittsburgh, they solved the problem the easy way: They built their own.

Until December, The Rex Theater on East Carson Street in the South Side had been vacant for two years in the middle of the area’s biggest and most popular shopping district. After the movie “South Park” closed, the marquee darkened, leaving the house tragically silent.

“It was painted gray, just floating around space,” recalls Chris Theoret, the leaseholder on the recently renovated Rex. “No one was able to secure it.” After he secured the lease on the building the day after Christmas last year, he and Bill DeCampli, owner of the Strip District-based record label, Silvertooth Records, worked tirelessly to turn the old cinema into a beautiful venue for musicians and other performers alike.

DeCampli was responsible for designing the stage and installing the sound system. The stage and the sound system could only be installed after removing the enormous 28-by-50 foot movie screen. Having played with some of rock ‘n’ roll’s legends, including Boz Skaggs and Eddie Money, DeCampli was able to bring this experience to renovating the theater as a place to play music.

Chris Toth, a technical theater graduate, helped with the construction in The Rex as well as DeCampli’s other project, a Strip District recording studio called The Sound Foundry.

Concessions are sold in the old lobby, and draft beer is free for the 21 and over crowd. Despite the beer, Theoret emphasizes the new Rex is “a theater, not a bar.”

The Rex is constantly looking for any kind of performers, from musicians to magicians. Theoret hopes that “The Rex becomes the center of the local artistic community, where anyone can come to perform” or to enjoy a good show.

As well as attracting local acts, The Rex is working on regional and national shows in conjunction with Silvertooth Records. This 11-year-old label has also released the debut CD of Leon, the band that Theoret fronts and that uses the Rex as its home base. Their album, Leon, is available at The Rex. The band’s next album will arrive sometime this month, most likely with a release party at the theater.

For film lovers, Theoret and DeCampli hope to add a 14-by-9 foot retractable movie screen and play classic American films when bands or other acts do not occupy the theater.

The Rex is active almost every night. Monday nights host Jackpot Bingo and a rock ‘n’ roll open stage takes place Wednesdays. Live improv comedy from the Susquehanna Hat Company appears every Thursday and Friday nights will be a party atmosphere directed at college students, complete with a DJ. Saturday nights host a rock ‘n’ roll headline night for those 21 and over, but it will be repeated on Sunday night for those under 21.

DeCampli said he and Theoret had been “kicking the idea [of reopening The Rex] around for years, since there weren’t any venues in Pittsburgh that we liked.”

In addition to the effort he has poured into the Rex, he hopes that The Sound Foundry will become the premier recording studio in the region.

For more information on shows at The Rex or maybe on booking your own, call Chris Theoret at The Rex at (412) 381-6811.