Henrico Theatre
305 East Nine Mile Road,
Highland Springs,
VA
23075
305 East Nine Mile Road,
Highland Springs,
VA
23075
1 person
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The Henrico Theatre was built in 1938, designed by architect Edward Francis Sinnott. The Henrico opened in the Richmond area on April 25, 1938, with the movie “Thin Ice” and had a seating capacity of 782. The theatre closed in 1996. The Henrico Theatre was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2005.
Before the recent completion of the theatre’s restoration, the terrazzo base with ‘Henrico’ was still intact on the front sidewalk leading to the theatre. The large marquee was in great shape and the large clock on the front center of the building was still there. The theatre was done in an Art Deco style as is evident from the front facade.
Henrico County bought the theatre in 1999 and spent $5.8 million to restore it. Dressing rooms and a green room were added, and the stage was enlarged. Molding remains in a period lime green, and the original paint scheme was preserved. Original light fixtures and chair ends were re-used. The carpet was recreated as it was originally. The auditorium now sits 400. The theatre has become a multi-use community facility for arts programming, including music, dance, theatre and film. The grand re-opening was October 27, 2007 with performances, a public ‘open house’ and tours.
Contributed by
Chuck Van Bibber, Howard B. Haas
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Recent comments (view all 16 comments)
It was announced on the news tonight that they will be having an open house on Saturday October 27 from 1 to 4 p.m. What great news!
Status should be changed to “Open” and Function to “Performing Arts Center”. Remodeled to a 400 seat Performing Arts Center which opens it’s doors tomorrow for the first time in a decade.
Here is a circa 1992 photo of the Henrico Theater.
The Grand Re-opening was Oct. 27, 2007. It was fantastic! Check out this article View link Randy Horne
After 2 years of construction, the Henrico Theatre opened in 1938. It originally had 820 seats. It was the 1st movie theatre built in Henrico County & the only art deco building in the area. It was designated as a bomb shelter in the WWWII era. The theatre was not closed in the mid 1970’s for several years as the description above states. My family actually operated the theatre from 1976 to 1996. We sold it to the County of Henrico in 1999. We have some wonderful memories! Enjoy these photos from the Grand Re-opening! www.flickr.com/photos/21212825@N03/
Here are some more wonderful photos of the theatre!!! http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=henrico+theatre
Here is the registration form for the National Register of Historic Places. Includes opening day announcement dated April 24, 1938.
This is a July 2008 photo.
A 2008 photo of the Henrico at night can be seen here.
This was the Henrico in 1984.