The Palace Theater in downtown Columbus turns 100 this November.
Columbus Association for the Performing Arts (CAPA) is starting the celebration early, with a birthday bash for the theater from 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday afternoon.
The event also kicks off what CAPA CEO Chad Whittington calls a "centennial celebration" that runs through 2028. Downtown's Ohio Theater celebrates 100 years in March 2028 and the Lincoln Theater in King Lincoln-Bronzeville follows that fall.
A brief history of the Palace
But first, CAPA will highlight the Palace — a gilded venue that was nearly lost about 50 years ago.
The Palace was built in 1926 as a live performance venue that anchored Columbus' grand LaVeque Tower. It drew large crowds for vaudeville and music shows.
As TV became more popular and people sought entertainment in the suburbs instead of downtown, the theater gradually became less busy, Whittington said. Eventually, it reached the point where it "basically wasn't operating."
"And so, it's the late 70s and there's actually a plan to turn the Palace, which is no longer functioning, into a parking garage to provide extra parking for the tower," Whittington said.
The theater would have been lost if it were not for Katherine LeVeque, who acquired LeVeque Tower in 1977. She decided the theater was worth saving.
LeVeque's obituary lists the renovation of the Palace as "perhaps her greatest legacy."
"When she learned of its imminent demise to create more parking, Katherine fervently fought to save the theater, funded the project herself, and could even be spotted personally polishing the beautiful, brass entry doors," the obituary reads.
LeVeque owned and managed the theater for about a decade. She then gifted it to the city of Columbus and CAPA. The lobby was later named in her honor.
"We love our old buildings. What we do inside of them, I think, is as important as the buildings themselves."- CAPA CEO Chad Whittington
CAPA took over operation of the theater in 1989, Whittington said. The Palace now hosts comedy, music, family shows, and the occasional touring Broadway show.
"We call it a workhouse theater," Whittington said.
The theater seats 2,695 — making it CAPA's second largest theater by capacity, coming in about 100 seats shy of the Ohio. Whittington said the two theaters had nearly the same number of seats until a roughly $8 million renovation of the Palace in 2018, during which CAPA replaced and spread out the seats on the main floor.
Whittington said an earlier renovation in the 2000s focused on improving the dressing rooms and making artist spaces more comfortable for performers.
Over the years, famous acts have taken the stage, from jazz pianist and composer Duke Ellington to comedians like Jay Leno and Jerry Seinfeld and singers like John Mellencamp.
Celebrating the centennial
CAPA will host a centennial tribute at the Palace on Nov. 14 in honor of one of the greatest musicians to have ever played the theater, Ray Charles.
"The Genius of Ray Charles, Hosted by Paul Shaffer and Patti Austin, Aloe Blacc, and more," is a curated event created for specifically to celebrate the Palace Theater, Whittington said.
Other special events marking the Palace's big anniversary include CAPA Hants the Palace, a family-friendly Halloween event from 4 to 7 p.m. on Oct. 21, and Opera Columbus' rendition of "Pirates! The Penzance Musical" on Nov. 6 and 8.
Whittington said the centennial celebrations for the Palace, Ohio and Lincoln theaters are not just about art and history. They are about the people who have kept the theaters going strong for decades.
"I think that anniversary is about celebrating these buildings, but also showing a lot of gratitude to the community. Because you don't get historic theaters that are a hundred years old without community support, not just for a few years, but really generation over generation caring about these buildings," Whittington said.
