Aztec Theatre
104 N. St. Mary's Street,
San Antonio,
TX
78205
104 N. St. Mary's Street,
San Antonio,
TX
78205
29 people
favorited this theater
Showing 26 - 50 of 72 comments
OK, that was odd. Anyway, as I started to finish with, the Powers That Be in the city government recently hired some expensive company to tell them to RAISE the already high parking fees for city garages. SA isn’t LA or NYC – locals are NOT going to sponsor downtown venues and restaurants, if they are forced to pay ridiculous fees. These fees hurt venues like The Aztec (in addition to the ill-advised shows themselves).
I’m “thrilled” to have to type this again. Other sites do have the capability of maintaining a typed post, even if the poster has been unknowingly signed off. Fix that. ANYWAY, this new show is not selling well, on a consistent basis. Its months are numbered, and I’ll be curious to see what the inevitable third utilization of this restored theater will be. In SA, it is always a mistake to base the concept of a venue on the tourist trade – they come here for the Alamo and River Walk, period. The locals do not care about this show. Like the Majestic, Empire, and soon Alameda, reveal, restored theaters work best when catering to the local community. Un UnUn UUUnUnUnfortunaUnfortunately, some
Had a chance to see “San Antonio Rose Live” labor day weekend. As posted above, the theater renovations are great, sound is great, seating very comfortable. As far as the show is concerned, the musicians are all seasoned pros that will not disappoint. If you have enough interest to purchase a ticket, you will not come away from this show disappointed. Great show !!
This will bomb, as well. Parking is an issue with the locals, and they should never base a concept on what is presumed to be the taste of the average tourist. While SA gets a lot of blue-collar families, it also attracts upper-end business conventioneers who are not going to be caught dead in the place. Plus, kids will be bored by the shows. SA isn’t Branson, or Nashville. I’m thrilled that the theater has been restored, but finding the proper usage of the space will be difficult.
The Aztec is now open! The website listed in the description is active once again.
Starting February 22, 2010 the Aztec is presenting the “Rose Hill Live Show”, a two hour concert of traditional country, western swing and gospel music. The show is running Fridays through Sundays through at least July 2010.
Went to the Aztec to see the San Antonio Rose Live Christmas Show. Status should be changed to Open. The theater is magnificent and the stage is very high tech. The stage was built out past the proscenium and the seats are large and comfortable with wide arm rests. The balcony is not in use. I imagine that the seating has been reduced considerably with the new seats. I could not see any traces of the organ. The organ screens were not back lit so I could not see if swell shades existed. There is an rectangle outlined on the center of the stage about where the proscenium is so I don’t know if the Wurlitzer console still exists in a pit. No one around seemed to know anything about the theater.
Only two left for sale at Amazon! Those Chick Chandler/June Clyde masterpieces sell out fast!
7 Doors of Death…
Only the finest in motion picture entertainment at the Aztec 3…
The balcony was made into two other screens, I believe.
I went to the grand reopening in 2006, and it was terrible. The pre-show in the lobby was dull, and the special film was completely out of focus, and also boring. I told my friend it wouldn’t last the year, and it didn’t. At one point, they were going to replace the IMAX-ish film, with some kind of rotating country-western show, like the Grand Old Opry. I think the economy may have slowed that down.
I had scouted the old theater for a movie, back in the early 90s, and it was creepy, but cool – pre-restoration.
I still don’t understand why the great delay in reopening this theater unless they have severe money issues, which, I would not not surprised if they did.
The theater had been totally renovated when it reopened in April 2006. The only thing missing was the orchestra seats (which had been removed for purposes of showing an Aztec multi-media presentation). I predicted at the time that there was no way this theater would survive based on their projected programming. It didn’t.
So, the theater closed and says that they are “under construction” with a Spring 2009 opening. Their web site shows blank calendars through June. What could they be building for 3 years? Nothing, of course. This is probably simply a financial issue and it is a shame that a theater of this caliber is not available to the public.
Is this theater’s management/ownership totally in private hands?
Back in New York, we have a similar tragedy with Loew’s Paradise owhich sits majestically on The Grand Concourse in The Bronx. A 3,000+ seat movie palace meticulously and spectacularly restored several years ago with private money, but which sits empty and unused due to a shady owner.
I hope both of these theaters get back on track soon!
A 1982 view of the Aztec theater’s marquee and sign.
No problem! You do such a great service posting so many photos. I really appreciate your efforts and enthusiasm, but I also know you would want to be notified if there was an error. Keep up the great work!
Hi LM, the picture you posted on 4/2 is not a recent picture. That photo shows a long abandoned and forlorn Aztec. I was at the Grand Opening of the renovated Aztec back in 2006. You posted a photo in July 2007 that actually is a recent photo. It is a great “before” shot!
One plus on the renovation is they are removing the oversized screen that blocked the view of the theater curtain and proscenium arch.
This is a link to my set of photos on the Aztec:
View link
They are planning to re-open as a live music venue presenting a Branson-style classic country music revenue “San Antonio Rose Live” headlined (at least initially) by Darrell McCall. Tickets are anticpated to be priced from $30-$50 and appeal to tourists. They will also make it available for TV and video production.
I wonder what kind of construction. This theater was spectacularly renovated. The only issue that I had was that all of the orchestra seats had been removed. Maybe they’ll put the orchestra seats back in and enable this theater to actually show movies again. Per my post above from the grand opening, I didn’t see how the theater would make money based on the presentation they had opened with.
The Aztec’s website says they’re closed for more construction but will reopen in spring 2008.
Lost Memory; that’s a great photo. Thanks for posting it.
Here is a 1948 ad from the San Antonio Light:
http://tinyurl.com/3aywtj
Aztec On The River’s webpage is at http://www.aztecontheriver.com and has some nice photos.
The Springfield Theatre in Springfield VT where “The Simpsons” movie had its premier on July 21st is listed here in Cinema Treasures, but there are no “fantasy” theatres listed, as far as I know! Getting back to the Aztec in SA, does anyone know where the newly-installed organ came from ??
The Springfield in which the Simpsons live is an imaginary location. I doubt if Cinema Treasures has entries for theaters in such places.
There is an Aztec Theater in the Simpson’s hometown of Springfield, but I couldn’t find a listing for it on Cinema Treasures. You can spot the theater in the Simpsons movie.
Yesterday I posted on the Majestic Theatre in San Antonio. Today I want to add my post to the Aztec Theatre. I am a local theatre historian for San Antonio. I have collected the histories for 29 years. Back in the late eighties I was able to get into the Aztec when Tom Powers was manager. I was permitted on the stage and in the projection room. See these photos and more at http://www.satheatres.com/