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Anlong line of dancers called the Rockettes kicked high and danced inntight unison. The Flying Wallendas flew about on a trapeze. Thenfamous dancer and choreographer Martha Graham did her thing, andnactor Ray Bolger, who played the scarecrow in ThenWizard of Oz,ndid his. Other acts, too, participated in the lavish opening show ofnRadio City Music Hall.
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nBillionairenJohn D. Rockefeller was building the Rockefeller Center in what hadnbeen a crummy part of Manhattan, and he decided to make a music hallnthe major attraction of the center. The theater, an Art Deconmasterpiece with a 60-foot-wide and 100-foot-long stage, opened onnthis date in 1932, and thousands of people came to see the opening.n(The theater has around 6,000 seats!)
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nItnwas, at the time, the largest indoor theater in the world.
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| The Rockettes do some nifty “wave” tricks during their shows. |
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nApparentlynthe variety show format was a bit of a flop—most of the acts seemednlost on that huge stage. Radio City Music Hall soon began to be usednto show movies. However, large-scale stage shows are shown there,ntoo, including the Rockettes in their famous Christmas spectacular.nThat show alone draws more than a million people every year.
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Sincenopening night, Radio City Music Hall has entertained more than 300nmillion people!
Sincenopening night, Radio City Music Hall has entertained more than 300nmillion people!n
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nAnd—guessnwhat?—Radio City Music Hall STILL lays claim to being the largestnindoor theater in the world!
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nDabblenin Art Deco
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nFindnout what we mean by “Art Deco” at Fun Kids,nand enjoy galleries of photos of Art Deco woodwork, glass, andnarchitecture at DecoPix.
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nAlsonon this date:
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nAnniversary of the debut of Peter Pan
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Kwanzaa (fromn12/26/11 to 1/1/12)
Kwanzaa (fromn12/26/11 to 1/1/12)n
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nAstronomernJohannes Kepler’s birthday
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nMicrobiologistnLouis Pasteur’s birthday
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