SCRANTON, LACKAWANNA CO. (WOLF) — A new *showstopping* mural is tap dancing its way to downtown Scranton.
“Song of the City” is a mural honoring the history of vaudeville that will be painted on the corner of Linden Street and Penn Ave. Using Poly tab, Philadelphia artist Jon Laidacker will depict a master of ceremonies under a proscenium arch casting bubbles of famous vaudeville actors like the Marx brothers, Harry Houdini, and Charlie Chaplin and serves as a tribute to Scranton’s history with the old-time performing art.
“There was a saying, ‘if you played Scranton, you could play anywhere.’ In other words, if you were successful here, you could make it to the to the big stage and developed more of a reputation,” explained Michael Gilmartin, a Scranton Tomorrow board member. “On Penn Avenue in particular, were the earliest of the vaudeville theaters going back to the 1800s in the first three blocks of Penn Avenue, the one, two, and 300 blocks. And this mural is a key part of that scene.”
A joint venture between Scranton Tomorrow’s mural arts program and the county, the mural is in its final stages of funding with Laidacker expected to start work in his studio within the next few weeks. Downtown residents can expect to be welcomed into the vibrant world of vaudeville when the mural finishes installation around the end of this summer and beginning of fall.