Actors' Playhouse at the Miracle Theater
280 Miracle Mile,
Coral Gables,
FL
33134
280 Miracle Mile,
Coral Gables,
FL
33134
5 people
favorited this theater
The Miracle Theater opened on December 7, 1948 as a neighborhood movie house with 1,600 seats, which were located on the main floor and a seperate raised section at the rear. Its sumptuous Streamline Moderne lobby and marquee welcomed visitors to the movies for decades until the theater closed.
The City of Coral Gables purchased the historic movie house and, in 1990, the Miracle Theater began a $6.5 million dollar renovation to become the home of the Actor’s Playhouse.
Five years later, the Miracle Theater became a performing arts center and returned the theater to its original Art Moderne opulence. Workers stripped off fibreglass wall coverings to reveal green-and-white Deco floral patterns, 1947 designs that had been hidden for years. The lobby was returned to its original elegance with refurbished hardwood counters and wall paneling, restored Art Deco lighting fixtures and signage, and a period-inspired carpet.
Restoration of the beautiful 600-seat Mainstage auditorium was completed in 1995. Mainstage has a proscenium opening 45' wide by 22' height.
In 1988, a portion of the large former balcony became the 300 seat Balcony Theater. The Balcony Theater is used for childrens theatre, smaller productions and by community cultural groups.
The Black Box Studio is also on the second floor. It seats up to 100, and has panels that can divide it up into three rooms. The Black Box performance space is designed for innovative new work, cutting-edge experimental theater, and to provide space for rehearsals, educational programs, and visual arts exhibitions.
Today, the Miracle Theater is still the home of the Actor’s Playhouse theater company. It is a cultural and performing arts center for the community that truly reflects the greatness of the theater’s past.
Contributed by
Ross Melnick
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Recent comments (view all 31 comments)
In what year did the Miracle get twinned?
Hi Michael.
The Miracle opened as a twin on June 23, 1978.
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Thanks, Al!
Here is a photo from September 2010.View link
My great-grandfather, J. Walter Cope worked with William H. Lee, the main architect, and Robert E. Collins the associate architect on building the Miracle theater and he drew up the plans. I found them recently among drawings for Duke University, Longwood gardens and the DuPont estate in Penn. I wonder if they’re worth much?
They are worth a lifetime of cherished memories.
If you want to sell your legacy for dollars, try craigslist.
1948, 1978 and 1983 grand opening ads are now in the photo section.
There has never been another Miracle Theatre in South Florida except for this one, Chuck. I went there when it was a single, a twin and also when it was a quad. It was then restored to a single screen for plays.
How could a theatre at 3465 N.W. 2nd Avenue ever have been in Coral Gables?
I remember the Coral, the Gables and the Miracle. Huricane Andrew took the ornate sign of the Miracle, which is now a playhouse, and the other two are gone.
Renovations described in this 1978 trade article: Boxoffice