Historic Tampa Theatre will raise the curtain on a $24.5 million restoration for centennial
By Gabriella Paul
October 9, 2026 at 5:00 AM EDT
Ahead of its 100th anniversary celebration, the movie palace completed an authentic restoration of the historic Duncan Auditorium. An open house is scheduled for Sunday.
Tampa Theatre reopens to the public this weekend after completing a seven-month restoration, just in time to celebrate it 100th anniversary.
The $24.5 million project authentically restored the historic Duncan Auditorium, modernized theater technology and improved critical infrastructure. A portion of the money also went toward creating a two-floor education center with dedicated classrooms for film studies that will open in the fall.
Workers in hardhats tweak the electrical wiring in Tampa Theatre's Duncan Auditorium ahead of its grand reopening on Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026. (1206x2088, AR: 0.5775862068965517)
These transformations represent phase one of a larger initiative called the Second Century Campaign to restore and expand the historic theater for future generations.
The second phase of improvements, estimated to be done in 2028, will create a third public programming space and restore the theater's "Mighty Wurlitzer Organ," according to a project overview timeline.
ALSO READ: A look back at the early magic of cinema ahead of the Tampa Theatre's grand reopening
Tampa Theatre CEO George Levesque said the goal of phase one was to — once again — achieve historic accuracy in the atmospheric, courtyard-style Duncan Auditorium.
"They did forensic paint analysis ... and discovered that, 'Well, you know what? That red
— it was actually a blue back in the day, or that blue was actually a green.'... So for the first time since 1926, it's going to look like it did in 1926," Levesque said.
Levesque said the near museum-level restoration was led by EverGreene Architectural Arts, a contractor that has worked on the U.S. Capitol Rotunda and basilicas internationally.
And like all old things, the decorative theater required a bit of dusting, too.
"If you see those terracotta roofs right here ... you see a whole bunch of different tiles," Levesque said. "After 100 years of dust, we thought they were all the same color, and when they came in and did the restoration, the first thing they did was clean it, and you realize it's about five different paint colors."
On Saturday, patrons will be invited back into the newly restored theater, at 711 N. Franklin St.
The first event, an exclusive screening of "Clue" for annual members, is followed by a week of events leading up to the sold-out centennial celebration:
The $24.5 million project authentically restored the historic Duncan Auditorium, modernized theater technology and improved critical infrastructure. A portion of the money also went toward creating a two-floor education center with dedicated classrooms for film studies that will open in the fall.
Workers in hardhats tweak the electrical wiring in Tampa Theatre's Duncan Auditorium ahead of its grand reopening on Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026. (1206x2088, AR: 0.5775862068965517)
These transformations represent phase one of a larger initiative called the Second Century Campaign to restore and expand the historic theater for future generations.
The second phase of improvements, estimated to be done in 2028, will create a third public programming space and restore the theater's "Mighty Wurlitzer Organ," according to a project overview timeline.
ALSO READ: A look back at the early magic of cinema ahead of the Tampa Theatre's grand reopening
Tampa Theatre CEO George Levesque said the goal of phase one was to — once again — achieve historic accuracy in the atmospheric, courtyard-style Duncan Auditorium.
"They did forensic paint analysis ... and discovered that, 'Well, you know what? That red
— it was actually a blue back in the day, or that blue was actually a green.'... So for the first time since 1926, it's going to look like it did in 1926," Levesque said.
Levesque said the near museum-level restoration was led by EverGreene Architectural Arts, a contractor that has worked on the U.S. Capitol Rotunda and basilicas internationally.
And like all old things, the decorative theater required a bit of dusting, too.
"If you see those terracotta roofs right here ... you see a whole bunch of different tiles," Levesque said. "After 100 years of dust, we thought they were all the same color, and when they came in and did the restoration, the first thing they did was clean it, and you realize it's about five different paint colors."
On Saturday, patrons will be invited back into the newly restored theater, at 711 N. Franklin St.
The first event, an exclusive screening of "Clue" for annual members, is followed by a week of events leading up to the sold-out centennial celebration:
- Saturday: Annual member party screening,of "Clue" (1985)
- Sunday: Open house to tour Duncan Auditorium. Free. Doors open at 1 p.m.
- Monday: Screening of "Casablanca" (1942) at 7 p.m.
- Tuesday: Screening of"The Wizard of Oz" (1939) at 7 p.m.
- Wednesday: Screening of "A Night at the Opera" (1935) at 7 p.m.
- Thursday: Centennial celebration (Sold out)