Six Flags has been a pioneer in the "Broadway-style" revue, and introduced elaborate musical stage shows throughout their parks. When Six Flags acquired Great Adventure, they added a new indoor show venue to the park's lineup, building a bubble style structure which was a common feature of theme parks and amusement parks throughout the world.
  

     
     
     


With the Six Flags brand coming to the park in 1977, the company began to invest and improve the operations and profitability, introducing tried and true concepts from the other theme parks in the Six Flags chain.  One of the things the park lacked was an indoor show venue that could house more elaborate stage shows.  For the 1978 season the Americana Music Hall was introduced, and became the park’s star venue for “Broadway-style” musical productions. 

 

Like the existing Administration Building (that now serves as the entrance to Superman Ultimate Flight), the theater building was a tent style structure with a steel frame covered with an outer canvas skin. The building offered an air conditioned escape from the heat of summer to enjoy a show, with massive cooling units located around the building to pump the cool air throughout. The front of the theater featured a façade to give the building a more permanent look, and featured a clock on the central roof peak. 

 



     
     
     
SHOWS AT THE AMERICANA MUSIC HALL/
SHOWCASE THEATRE
     
  1978        Celebrate  
  1979        Those City Lights  
  1980        Strictly USA  
  1981        Strictly USA/Great Rock N Roll Time Machine  
  1982        Errol Manoff's Fantasy Factory/Great Rock N Roll Time Machine  
  1983        Errol Manoff's Fantasy Factory/ Spirit of the Olympics  
  1984        Errol Manoff's Fantasy Factory/Spirit of the Olympics/ Master Acrobats of the Orient
  1985        (dark)  
  1986        Evolution  
  1987        Chinese Golden Dragon Acrobats  
  1988        Red White & Blue Revue  
  1989        Red White & Blue Revue/Stars of the USSR  
  1990        The Fun Factory Show  
  1991        Jukebox Heroes  
  1992        The Big Show  
  1993        Legends in Concert/Taiwan Chinese Acrobats  
  1994        Dennis the Menace Screen Test  
  1995        Golden Dragon Chinese Acrobats  
  1996        Mysteries of the Orient  
  1997        The Music of Warner Brothers  
  1998        Warner Brothers 75th Anniversary  
  1999        The Peking Acrobats  
  2000        Odyssey Magic Show  
  2001        Radio Active  
  2002        Circo Magnifico  
  2003        Mapapa Acrobats  
  2004        The World of Magic  
  2005        The World of Magic  
  2006        Industrial Movement  
  2007        (dark)  
  2008        (dark)  
  2009         (dark)  
  2010         (dark)  
  2011         (dark)
  2012         (dark)  
  2013         (dark)  
  2014         (dark)  
  2015         Brad Ross Unbelievable Illusion Show/Jack Frost  
  2016         (dark)  
 
 
     








 

Inside, the theater featured a fairly elaborate stage, with curtains and backdrops that could be changed throughout a show.  Above the audience a set of catwalks allowed access to the stage lighting and spotlight towers were located towards the back of the building.  In the middle of the theater a state-of-the-art sound and light booth. 

 

 

While most of the entertainment was produced by in-house talent, several shows were brought in as traveling acts and made a brief performance run at Great Adventure.  One such show was "Errol Manoff's Fantasy Factory", a larger than life puppet show featuring huge foam puppets of  some of Hollywood's most famous celebrities like Betty Davis, Liza Minnelli, Dolly Parton, and Joan Crawford, complete with wire hanger!  The highlight of the show was an enormous Frankenstein puppet that reached all the way to the top of the stage opening and sang Putin' on the Ritz from Mel Brook's Young Frankenstein. 














   




   
   
   
   




     
Click the image below for the
Golden Dragon
Chinese Acrobats
commercial from 1987:
 
     
     


The shows presented at the Americana Music Hall were always crowd pleasing.  Typically smaller scale entertainment was booked for the slower Spring and Fall months.  This included one man shows  and multi-media productions like the Great Rock N Roll Time Machine and The Spirit of the Olympics.
Major musical revues, variety shows, magic acts and acrobatic shows were presented during the peak summer months, typically kicking off on Memorial Day Weekend and running through Labor Day.   Most shows made use of recorded instrumentals with live vocals and elaborate lighting and special effects including smoke, strobes, and even snow.
   
     





     
     
Musical revues included Celebrate, Strictly USA, Evolution, the Red White & Blue Revue, Jukebox Heroes, The Big Show, Legends in Concert, the Music of Warner Brothers, Warner Brothers 75th Anniversary Show, and Radio Active. All of these shows were generally very energetic and up-tempo and featured a cast of young performers in colorful costumes singing and dancing.

Acrobatic shows through the years were usually performed by an Asian troop under the names Master Acrobats of the Orient, the Chinese Golden Dragon Acrobats, the Taiwan Chinese Acrobats, the Golden Dragon Chinese Acrobats, Mysteries of the Orient, and the Peking Acrobats. The Mapapa Acrobats were an African acrobatic troupe.

Some of the more unique shows and events the theater has hosted over the years include:

Errol Manoff's Fantasy Factory- A show with larger than life celebrity lookalike puppets.

Stars of the USSR- A Russian "cirque"- style performance troupe who performed for part of the summer season and was part of the Russian Glasnost good will in 1989. Acts included traditional Russian dances and a jaw dropping human spider act.

The Fun Factory Show- A one man show with magic and music about families and children growing up.

The Dennis the Menace Screen Test- An interactive show promoting the Warner Brothers film.

Odyssey and World of Magic- two shows featuring an array of magic tricks in slickly produced shows.

Circo Magnifico- A cirque-style stage show.

Industrial Movement- A "Stomp" style percussion show featuring drummers and dancers in a fast audio and visual spectacular.

A Pictorial History of Makin' the Movie Maverick- A behind the scenes presentation about the Mel Gibson and Jodie Foster movie Maverick.

 Recycle This- a limited run show promoting recycling with an interactive game show format.

Kidz Bop- A limited run show featuring the Kidz Bop performers singing top 40 songs kids' style.  
   
   
   
   
   
     
     






 
   
   
   
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
During the park's annual Fright Fest Halloween celebrations, the theater has been home to several shows including Thriller (I, II & III) "A Dance Spooktacular", Night Creatures featuring the Crypt Keeper from Tales from the Crypt, Nightscares, and for more than 10 seasons, the Hypnosteria show.

The stage was equipped with a roll-down movie screen which could be used for film, slide and video presentations. Perhaps the most unique show held at the theater was a screening of "The Wizard of Oz"
   
     
     
 
     
The theater itself has remained relatively unchanged since its construction.   In 1984, the venue's stage and seating grandstands were revamped making use of safer building materials.  Early sponsors of the theater included Toyota, Thom McAn , Southland, Chrysler Corporation, and Chevrolet.   Along with Chrysler's sponsorship in 1987, the name of the theater was changed from the Americana Music Hall to the Showcase Theatre.  Along with the name change came a car display area directly in front of the building. 
















The theater offered shows season after season until 2007 when it became a special events facility used primarily for presentations, dance and cheer competitions, as well as the Hypnosteria Fright Fest staple.  Given its close proximity to the Old Country catering pavilion next door, the unused presentation hall is now available as a "Theater for Rent".