Athens Theatre
124 N. Florida Avenue,
DeLand,
FL
32720
124 N. Florida Avenue,
DeLand,
FL
32720
8 people
favorited this theater
Showing 1 - 25 of 37 comments
Closed by ABC Florida State on June 19th, 1975. Article posted.
They are showing live theatre. My mother in law volunteers as an usher.
Amazing that the area can support a single screen theatre of this size.
Here is a picture from 1943.
During the ‘50s and '60s, the Athens was owned by longtime DeLand resident Bill Tison, who also owned Bill Tison Auto Sales to the left of the cinema.
My friend Donna who lives in nearby Deltona told me she saw Cosi Fan Tutti here recently. Of course I only wanted to know about the theater (I already know about Mozart…), and here it is! I love finding restored gems like this one.
The June 7, 1952, issue of Boxoffice devoted its Modern Theatre section to articles about remodeling, and one of the theaters featured was the Athens. The article said that the architects for the remodeling were Kemp, Bunch & Jackson, and that the new configuration of the auditorium provided space for 812 seats.
The status of the Athens should be changed to open.
rdsub: Nice to read that downtown DeLand is a happening little place nice with nice restaurants and bars now! I see you typed Deland and I have recently seen it typed as DeLand. Which is politically correct?
The Athens seems to be alive and well. Just picked up a flyer for events in Jan 09 and they are showing classic movies and hosting events. I live in the area and I’m going to try and check out a classic flick. Downtown Deland is a happening little place. Nice restaurants and bars. Apparently it used to be quite run down in the early 90’s so it’s nice to see come to life.
Patsy: The 1950 remodeling the magazine article referred to was the one that gave the Athens the facade that appears in the postcard view currently at the top of this Cinema Treasures page- the one that looks sort of like a drive-in’s screen tower.
“remodeling the facade”….I wonder if this is the photo I’ve seen on the Athens Theatre website of the front of the building completely hidden? If so, it is an example of what was done in the 70’s to “modernize” the look though at least the building was not demolished to make room for another downtown parking lot. I applaud the City of DeLand and all of those involved in the fine renovation/restoration of this theatre built by local DeLand laborers in the 20’s. Check out the website and the slide show there…you will be amazed! I plan to visit the Athens in March and will report on my theatre trip to DeLand FL. And the theatre’s name was derived from the vision of DeLand’s founder, Henry DeLand, who sought to create a city that would be the “Athens of Floridaâ€.
The Athens Theatre underwent a major remodeling in 1950. An item in the April 29, 1950, issue of Boxoffice Magazine described the extensive changes planned for the house by manager Joe Fleishel. These included expanding the lobby by incorporating a former cross-aisle at the back of the auditorium, installing new seating, redesigning the rest rooms, replacing the staircase to the balcony with a new, curved staircase, plus remodeling the facade and installing a new marquee and box office. A brief item in the June 10 issue of Boxoffice said that the renovations were underway, and that the new interiors had been designed by decorator Dick Oliver.
It is an exciting time for supporters of the Athens Theatre. The long lasting renovation and restoration will be coming to a close this Fall and a dedication ceremony is being planned for September 19, 2008. The facility will concentrate on classic and independent movie screenings for the first several months while equipment is being installed and the building is readied for live theatrical performances. A Grand Reopening on January 6, 2009 (the anniversary of the original opening) will kick off live performances. The facility will operate year around thereafter with a diverse programming schedule of movies, comedy and musical concerts, as well as smaller touring shows.
The renovation costs will be approximately $9.6 million. Anyone interested in learning more or taking a tour can contact me directly at I am the Executive Director and give tours on a weekly basis to interested individuals and companies.
InterAmerica Stage, Inc. has been retained to provide rigging equipment, draperies, track and an Orchestra Pit Lift. We are thrilled to be the successful stage equipment contractors for this project. Our staff includes many people who live in Volusia County and some that live in Deland.
http://iastage.com/historical_renovations
Richard D: Thanks so much for your important tornado information as I have been concerned about those communities.
Patsy:
Deltona and Orange City are OK. Also Debary where I live. Most of the damage was south of Deland in area of Sonny’s BBQ, Sheriffs’s Office substation. and in the area of Huntoon Landing..15A runs North /South west of Deland got damage also.
Richard D: What do you know about the Orange City and Deltona areas?
The besst of my knowledge there was not any damage to the Athens in Deland. There was plenty of destruction in Deland however but the Athens area was lucky.
Since the recent tornado damage and Volusia being one of the effected counties, can anyone report on the Athens in Deland FL? I hope it is okay and that those effected by this terrible twister in the Deland/Orange City/Deltona area sustained minible damage compared to Lake County and Lady Lake FL, in particular.
Roloff: And after comparing the post card on this site with the one you have posted they have made a wonderful change in the exterior of this theatre by taking down that 70’s looking facade. Too bad to read that the building next to the theatre has been demolished as it was probably a nice storefront business at one time.
Roloff: Thanks for posting the evening photo. I used to visit Deland on a regular basis when my late father lived in the area, but I wasn’t into old theatres then so I didn’t really notice this Deland ‘gem’ which is a shame.
I drove by the pretty theatre two weeks ago, the marquee was lit up, nice and bright, and I took a lot of pictures. I also managed to pick up a vintage postcard of the theatre later in South Beach, Miami, from 1947. See them on my flickr stream: View link
This theatre is a true gem as seen in May 27 photo and to think that I visited Deland many times during my years in FL and never knew it was there as I wasn’t into old theatres then.
I went by the Athens the other day and the restoration in coming along fine, although slow. They rent out the marquee space for personal messages to birthday, anniversary etc.