The Imperial Theater in Augusta is a local treasure. Today, it is the only remaining working historic theater in the city. In its golden era, the stage was graced with numerous celebrity performers.
The building is famous for its Edwardian style architecture, much of which remains in place today. Restoration work has been done throughout the years with care being taken to maintain as much of the original architecture as possible.
Originally designed in the early 1900s, the theater first opened its doors to audiences in 1917 under the original name “The Wells”. It soon faced financial difficulty due to the outbreak of the Spanish Flu epidemic, forcing venues to close. The quarantine put financial strain on the business resulting in it being sold to Lynch Enterprises in 1918. The theater reopened later that year under the new name, The Imperial.
For the next two decades, the Imperial hosted mainly vaudevillian acts and featured numerous famous actors including Charlie Chaplin, Anna Pavlova, Rio Carrillo, and many more. As vaudevillian acts became less popular, the building was renovated in 1929 to become a full-time movie theater. By 1936, the first screening of the first ever color film was aired.
The building remained a movie theater up until 1981 when it was forced to close due to a decline in the area. It remained closed for years, sitting derelict and faced the threat of demolition. Local community support saved it. The building is now listed on the National Register as being critical to the character of the Broad Street Historic District.
By 1985, the building was bought by Latco Construction with the support from Augusta Opera and the Augusta Players. Deals were struck to renovate the building once more to bring it back to its former glory as a performing arts theater. It re-opened in 1985, primarily showing ballet and opera performances.
To this day, the two main production houses are the Augusta Opera and the Augusta Players. Other groups include The Columbia County Ballet, Ed Turner and the Number 9 Band, Storyland Theater, and many more artists and studio companies.
Shows range from musicals, concerts, dance, and comedy.
The seating capacity is 853, which is big enough for a decent sized audience, but small enough to experience the original sound ambience of live musicals within a historic theater.
If you’re a fan of live entertainment, the Imperial Theater is worth a trip to experience the classic historic ambience.
Be sure to check out their Mighty Wurlitzer Organ, which was the original organ used since 1925 to play musical soundtracks during silent movies. Unlike an organ, the Mighty Wurlitzer was designed to be a “one-man orchestra”. A historic landmark in its own right.