Palace Theatre
210 Main Street,
Canadian,
TX
79014
210 Main Street,
Canadian,
TX
79014
1 person
favorited this theater
This theater was originally constructed in 1909 as a vaudeville house named Pastime Theatre. In 1916, it was renamed Queen Theatre and became the Palace Theatre in 1932. It has remained a theater ever since.
The current owner restored and renovated it in 1996, employing the architectural firm Killis Arnold & Associates. I’m not sure how much of the decor is original. The entire auditorium seems to have been redone, save the wooden floor, which still has scars where the old seats were mounted.
I believe the outdoor ticket booth and marquee are reproduction, but the vertical was manufactured by a company that no longer seems to be in business. The theater has a video store in the old dressing rooms, and a very nice concession stand with generous helpings.
The theater, and indeed the entire town, are a shining example of what a small town can do besides fold up its sidewalks. And no, the answer doesn’t include Wal-Mart or any other tacky garbage. I must thank the manager, Rob Talley, for turning his neon back on after closing so I could photograph it.
Contributed by
Seth Gaines
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Recent comments (view all 10 comments)
I just looked at the pictures on the Palace’s webite and immediately lusted after this theatre. It looks like a wonderful theatre and many thanks for submitting it. I hope I’ll have the opportunity to see it in person someday. Seth, does it have a balcony and do you know the approximate seating capacity.
No balcony, doubt it ever had one. I’d guess the capacity is about 200-300.
Seth, according to Rob the theatre once had a small balcony but it is now closed off and is used for air conditioning units.
Current seating capacity for the Palace theatre is 289.
This one’s on my list for this summer, too! I’ll post as soon as I visit. I’ve looked in the windows, but I haven’t been inside yet.
A photo of the Canadian Theatre.
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Photo:
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Here is another photo of the Palace Theater.
Another photo can be seen here.
The architect for the restoration of the Palace Theater was Killis Almond, of Killis Almond & Associates, a San Antonio, Texas, based firm specializing in the restoration of historic buildings. Click on their “Projects” link to find a link to a page about this theater, as well as links to pages about some of their other theater projects.