Tampa Theater gets ready to expand for first time in nearly 100 years

TAMPA, Fla. - The Tampa Theater has been projecting movies on Franklin Street since 1926.

"We opened as a silent movie palace on Oct. 15 of 1926 and ever since it has been the heart of Tampa’s film community," commented Jill Witecki, Tampa Theater’s director of marketing and community relations. 

The historic theater is in the middle of its 95th year.

"The last couple of years have been a little bit odd, so part of our celebration has been all of the things Tampa Theater has survived," stated Witecki. We survived the Great Depression. We survived WWII and now we’ve survived a pandemic. But, at its core is what makes Tampa Theater so special is the history, is the tradition, is the nostalgia that this community has for its beloved movie palace."

The theater was designed by architect John Eberson, who made famous a style he called the atmospheric. He wanted to create a themed attraction, which is something Central Florida is known for and in the case of Tampa Theater, he wanted to create a Mediterranean courtyard.  

"When you walk through those doors, Jon Eberson wanted it to feel like you were walking into a beautiful, ornate courtyard at night with twinkling stars overhead and statues, and flowers and birds and he wanted it to feel like it had always been there," Witecki shared. 

Part of what made the atmosphere so special was the attention to detail. 

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"From the columns all over the theater to the ornate crests and shields, all of the statues, you’ve seen the gargoyles out in the lobby, John Eberson wanted to make sure that not only are you here to experience a movie, but you’re experiencing grandeur on a scale that the common person had really never seen," Witecki said.

Over the years, the industry changed and many movie theaters were toned down due to those changes, but Tampa Theater survived.

"We anticipate that over the next five years we’re going to see full restoration of this building and once this building is restored then we get to look at something that we’ve never done before in 95 years and that’s expansion," Witecki stated. 

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T2 will be a tiny theater with about 40 seats, so it will be a different experience than in the main hall. 

"Whereas that has all the beauty and grandeur, this is going to be a perfect cinematic experience with perfect sightlines and perfect sound," Witecki said. 

Tampa Theater opens its doors 700 times a year for films, live shows and special events.

LINK: Learn more information at Tampatheatre.org.