BSPA - Capitol Theatre Restoration Project

The Brownsville Society for the Performing Arts is leading the effort to restore the Capitol Theatre in Brownsville's Historic Downtown District and we're honored to be entrusted with this worthwhile task.

Its conversion from a fond memory into a working performing arts theater is no doubt a great challenge. On the other hand, it's a unique opportunity for our generation to bestow a great gift upon dozens of generations to follow… a cultural legacy that could last 100 years or more!

We've got the top theater restoration and performing arts consultants in the USA working with us. Phase I of their study is complete and the initial outlook for a viable project appears to be excellent. Soon you’ll have an opportunity to participate in this great endeavor. In the meantime, we invite you to dream along with us, then help us turn these dreams into a reality. Imagine...

	A jewel in the heart of our city!
	A real performing arts theater… the pride of the Rio Grande Valley!
	A driving force behind Brownsville's Historic Downtown Entertainment District!
	A state-of-the-art 1,200 seat venue, where the world's best artists would be proud to perform!
	An invaluable asset for our own artists… a home for our own symphony orchestra, our opera, dance and theater companies!
	An educational facility for our students and our entire community!
	A resource for our schools and non-profit organizations for fund-raising through cultural entertainment!
	A cinema once more... where we can again enjoy movies the way it used to be! A home for the CINESOL Latino Film Festival!
	A place where our entire community can come together to celebrate our culture and creativity!

You’ll be hearing lots more from us on the restoration project as it develops. Click here if you support this project and would like to stay informed on its progress!

Picture Gallery

	Here's our architect's rendition of what the Capitol Theatre will do for Brownsville's Historic Downtown District... it's called revitalization!
	Here's a picture of the Capitol Theatre back in the 1940s. Notice all the people waiting in line to get in... despite the rain!

This set of four pictures of the Capitol Theater, taken in 1954, were found by our good friend Gene Balch.

"The French Line", a movie with Jane Russell, Gilbert Roland and Craig Stevens was playing at an already neglected theater.

The picture on the bottom left is the only one we have of the interior!

1938 Charro Days Parade on Levee Street.	1938 Charro Days Parade on Levee Street.
Current view of Capitol Theatre from 11th St.	Original detail of ceiling and columns.
Interior view during initial rehab in 1999	Remaining portion of original walls and ceiling.

History

In the Fall of 1999, shortly after the property was gifted to the city by the Holand and Galonski families, UTB/TSC's campus newspaper, The Collegiate, published an article on the BSPA's hopes for the theatre's future restoration and its plans to use it as a venue during the Third Annual Brownsville Latin Jazz Festival. Click here to read it.

Credits

The Board of Directors of the BSPA is sincerely grateful to the City of Brownsville for granting us the opportunity of a lifetime.

Special recognition is due to Peter Goodman, Director of Brownsville's Historic Downtown District, a transplanted New Yorker who's vision, determination and love for Brownsville inspired us to become deeply involved in this worthy endeavor.