Monarch Theatre

The Monarch Theatre was a theatre building that was located in Gotham City near Gotham Square.

It was perhaps best known for the last location that Thomas and Martha Wayne were seen alive in public before their deaths in the alley between Pearl and Phillips Street behind the theatre.

History

One night, the Wayne family visited the Monarch Theatre to see Footlight Frenzy. After they left the theater, Thomas and Martha were murdered by Jack Napier.

Legacy

While originally named after the Monarch Playing Card Company; a name of the factory which contributed to Joker's birth in 1951, and was used to contribute to the nature of Batman and the Joker who were mirror images of each other for the film, the theatre became a prominent part of Batman's origin mythos for the comics and the games.

Behind the Scenes

Furst Monarch building — Sketch of the area by Anton Furst.

Background information and notes

The design of the theatre was intended to be a dark hulk of a building that squashed any homeliness that otherwise might have been instilled by the surrounding pawnbrokers, snackbars and drugstores.

Trivia

The Gotham Globe headline that told of the murders of Thomas and Martha Wayne was dated Thursday, October 26, and likely placed the date of their murders on Wednesday, October 25.

In Other Media

Lego monarch — The Monarch Theatre in Lego Batman.

Lego Batman: The Video Game

The Monarch Theatre appeared in the first level of the game.

Batman: Arkham City

The Monarch Theatre appeared inside Arkham City, but the building itself bears no resemblance to the film version. The player could find it and go around to Crime Alley, which was located behind Monarch Theatre, to find two chalk drawings of Thomas and Martha Wayne. The player could pay their respects, a heart-touching scene in which the camera turned around a kneeling Batman which - if left to play long enough - unlocked an achievement. A tape could also be found, that was recorded by Professor Hugo Strange. Strange commented about Bruce's parents and how he dealt with their death by wearing Batman's costume.

The Theatre also served as Batman, The Joker, and Clayface's final showdown at the end of the game. It was revealed to be above a Lazarus Pit, but its floor was destroyed during the fight. It was unknown what happened to the theatre after Arkham City shut down.