Walker Theater

116 W. Broad Street,
Richmond, VA 23220

Unfavorite No one has favorited this theater yet

Additional Info

Previously operated by: Lichtman Theatres

Architects: Claude Knox Howell

Previous Names: Little Theatre, Maggie Walker Theater, Edison Theater, Regency Theater

Nearby Theaters

Walker Theater

Opened in 1911 as the Little Theatre with a seating capacity of 386, it was especially built for showing motion pictures but did have a small stage. It closed in 1920 and spent several years under different managements open and closed.

In 1936 it was renovated and re-opened as the Maggie Walker Theater (later known as the Walker Theater) it was operated by Lichtman Theatres and catered for a ‘Negro’ audience.

It closed in 1963 but re-opened on December 12, 1975 as the Edison Theater screening ‘art’ films, one of which was reputed to be a ‘snuff film’. It was soon closed.

It was taken over by the Theatre IV Theatre Company and initially known as the Regency Theatre, but now serves as extra dressing room space and a rehearsal room for their adjacent Empire Theatre.

Contributed by KenRoe

Recent comments (view all 2 comments)

Joe Vogel
Joe Vogel on February 15, 2013 at 8:58 pm

The permit to build this theater was issued to M. L. Hofheimer. The architect for the project was C. K. Howell, and the contractor was A. C. Houston. A description of Howell’s drawings says that the “…facade features Corinthian columns, masks and garlands, and statuary.” The modern photos linked earlier show that quite a bit of this decoration survived into recent times.

rivest266
rivest266 on September 26, 2022 at 7:41 am

Reopened as Edison on December 12th, 1975. Ad posted.

You must login before making a comment.

New Comment

Subscribe Want to be emailed when a new comment is posted about this theater?
Just login to your account and subscribe to this theater.