Designed by Jacksonville architect Roy Benjamin and famed interior designer R.E. Hall of New York, the Florida Theatre opened to much fanfare. And the scene did not disappoint. The magnificent structure features many characteristics of the Mediterranean Revival style of architecture and is punctuated by an ornate, six-story-high proscenium arch that looms beautifully over the auditorium. According to the theatre’s website, “the architects envisioned a Moorish courtyard at night, resplendent with glittering stars, grand balconies and fountains.”
For its time, the Florida Theatre was technologically advanced, boasting unique features like central heating and air conditioning and vacuuming systems. Unfortunately, one favorite early aspect is gone – a roof garden where patrons sipped champagne and danced beneath the stars.
An Evening At the Theatre
The Florida Theatre, like many theatres of the day, was designed to accommodate both stage and screen shows. Back then, going to the movies was a much different experience than we know today. A typical evening out at the theatre typically consisted of six elements: a news reel, comedy short, a cartoon or travelogue (a short program highlighting a travel destination or story), an overture by a band performed on the theatre’s moveable orchestra pit, a stage presentation and, finally, the silent feature film.
Such programs fell by the wayside with the fall of Vaudeville, the advent of the talkies and the financial despair of the Great Depression. Despite a few short-term closings, creative management, marketing and programming kept the Florida Theatre open and out of bankruptcy.
Elvis Has Left the Building
The Florida Theatre enjoys a bit of Rock and Roll infamy. It was the site of a young Elvis Presley’s first indoor concert. But not all in Jacksonville were excited about the show. Juvenile Court Judge Marion Gooding forbid the King from displaying his already infamous “Elvis the Pelvis” dance moves, lest they incite moral debauchery among local youth. Presley obeyed, and Judge Gooding chaperoned from the front row. But to no avail – simply a wiggle of his finger sent Presley’s young fans swooning. So worked up were the gals in the audience that, legend has it, Presley had to escape from a second-story window around the corner from the theatre’s entrance.
The Curtain Falls - And Rises Again
The late 1960s and 1970s proved unprofitable for the theatre, which had gone from playing first-run films of the day like “Hello, Dolly” to B-grade and action movies. The struggling theatre closed its doors in 1980, but a public outcry followed. Local and State legislators listened and a $4.1 million capital campaign was launched. Following a massive restoration effort, the theatre reopened in October 1983. Today, it hosts an array of events including concerts, stage plays, fashion shows, lectures and fundraisers of all sorts and houses several nonprofit organizations and events including Theatreworks, the Jacksonville Film Festival and the Florida Ballet, among others.
Devan Stuart - Devan Stuart is a longtime journalist and five-time Florida Press Association Award winner.
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