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Some may dispute my making a large section of this article merely the table of contents from American Theaters: Performance Halls of the Nineteenth Century. I think the list of theaters warrants inclusion in that it represents the considered selection of a historically significant set of theaters made after substantial study. The list is a significant product of Joan Dillon's work. It is analogous to a section on "The Philosophy of Plato" in the article on Plato. I think the list will be of interest to people in the historic preservation and theater worlds as well as the people for whom the theaters are parts of their communities. It is also a fun entry point leading to further articles. It increases the serendipity if Wikipedia browsing.
I see from looking at a number of the Wikipedia articles and official websites for the theaters on this list that a number of them go by other names in other places. For the sake of (1) preserving Dillon's original document, (2) identification back to the sources and (3) because I presume Dillon called the theaters what she did for a reason (e.g. it's what they were called at the time, it's the official name in historical artifacts, etc) I have kept the names from American Theaters: Performance Halls of the Nineteenth Century here. I think they should remain as-is.
Most of the sources consulted suggest Dillon played a much higher profile role, probably the primary, lead role, in saving the Folly Theater than I portray here, but they do so without substantiation in concrete activities. For example, I suspect that Annbar Associates was set on demolishing the theater and the fight to save it was a protracted one with numerous rounds of maneuver and counter-maneuver, at many of which it was really touch-and-go whether the theater would survive to the next round. I suspect that having it designated a landmark, then added to the National Register of Historic Places were power-plays designed to force Annbar's hand. I think I have the chronology off in that I think that the National Register of Historic Places designation may have been the coup that induced the sale/donation at far below asking price. I would love to be able to tell the story of the saving of the Folly Theater in more detail than I do here and have spent some time looking at the Kansas City Star. But I can't find the documentation of Dillon's concrete activities, of city council votes, of various departmental permit wrangling. I also suspect that the Performing Arts Foundation was a larger cast of characters than I have listed here.
A portrait of Joan Dillon for the infobox is necessary. A photograph of her involved in her historic preservation work would be great as well.
I would love it if someone in the Kansas City area would take pictures of the plaque and the pigeon figurines for inclusion in this article.
Why is the picture of the building as it stands today on the article for the Folly Theater so terrible? It's just about as dull a picture as you could get. Look at the picture of it on Google Maps: it's stunning!
The articles for the various theaters described in American Theaters should be edited to indicate their inclusion, to point to it as a source of further reading and to link to this article to complete its integration into Wikipedia and raise its profile.
