About the Nonprofit
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A catapult for the imagination since 1926, the Tampa Theatre is a symbol of Tampa's glorious past and bright future. Tampa Theatre is a passionately protected landmark and one of America's best preserved examples of grand movie palace architecture.
The mission of the Tampa Theatre is to protect, preserve and program the Theatre as a creative film and cultural center for our community
Built in 1926 and threatened with demolition in the 1970's, Tampa Theatre is now a community landmark. We have been recognized as one of the "World's Most Spectacular Theaters" by CNN (Apr 2014) and "10 Most Beautiful Cinemas in the World" by BBC (Nov 2013). We have also been named to the inaugural class of Sundance Institute Art House Project Theaters. The Theatre is open year-round and hosts almost 700 events a year, including films, concerts, summer camp and other learning programs. We draw over 140,000 patrons a year, including 20,000 school children who visit as part of the Hillsborough County Theater Field Trip Program.
Tampa Theatre’s primary focus is films – first-run, foreign, independent, classic and silent. In addition to this programming, we are also used as a concert and performance venue for many famous performers, celebrities, and politicians, including Annie Lennox, Jimmy Fallon, Nobel Prize winner Elie Weisel and scientist Jane Goodall, as well as former president George H.W. Bush, Bob Dole, and Jesse Jackson, and writers like Paula Hawkins and David Sedaris. We also host a film making summer camp for kids with the assistance of the University of South Florida
