About Donk's Theatre
Architecture, Historic Architecture, Cultural, Theatres And Entertainments, Cinemas, Interesting Places, Destroyed Objects, Music Venues
Donk's Theatre was a historic movie theater located at Hudgins, Mathews County, Virginia. It was built in 1946-1947, and was a vernacular rectangular building constructed of rusticated cinder and concrete block, painted white and cream with Art Deco style details. The building measured 50 feet by 100 feet, and consisted of the central theatre entrance, storefronts, and a 504-seat auditorium. The theater operated as a segregated venue for motion pictures until passage of federal civil rights legislation in 1964. The movie business was declining due to TV, and the theater closed in 1970. It reopened in 1975, as a live country music concert hall. On January 22, 2016, the roof of Donk's collapsed due to heavy snowfall from a winter storm, as did several of the outside walls. Little survived, and what remains will have to be demolished; the owners have said that they will save the marquee.
