Dixie Theater
125 E. Beverly Street,
Staunton,
VA
24401
125 E. Beverly Street,
Staunton,
VA
24401
4 people
favorited this theater
Additional Info
Previously operated by: Stanley-Warner Theatres, Warner Bros. Circuit Management Corp.
Architects: John Adolph Emil Eberson
Firms: T.J. Collins & Sons
Functions: Live Theatre
Styles: Italian Renaissance, Streamline Moderne
Previous Names: New Theater, New Dixie Theater
Phone Numbers:
Box Office:
540.885.8445
Nearby Theaters
News About This Theater
- Jul 16, 2014 — Dixie to close
- Dec 17, 2010 — Dixie Theater in Staunton gets upgrades; bigger changes coming in five years
Opened in 1913 as the New Theater by local architectural firm T. J. Collins and Sons, this gem is located at the intersection of Beverley Street and Market Street in downtown Staunton.
Designed in an Italian Renaissance Revival style, the theater’s exterior features dramatic arches (inlaid with terra cotta tiles), false windows (also decorated with terra cotta tiles), and, above the arches, four laughing theatrical faces. After a fire in 1936 destroyed the original interior, it was rebuilt in Art Moderne style by John Eberson with seating for 1,100 in orchestra & balcony levels and reopening as the New Dixie Theater. On April 10, 1981 it was split into three screens. In 1983 a fourth screen was added.
The Dixie Theater’s old vertical marquee is gone, but its exterior still retains much of this old theater’s charm. It was closed as a movie theatre on February 24, 2008. It now operates as a live theatre. It was closed for renovations in May 2026.
Contributed by
Ross Melnick
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Recent comments (view all 23 comments)
3 screens on April 10th, 1981. Grand opening ad in the photo section.
1918 postcard added courtesy of George & Sharon Sproul.
Frazier Associates, the firm designing the renovations for the Staunton Performing Arts Center, has this web page with a description of the project and a brief slide show that includes renderings, a floor plan, and a couple of historic photographs.
More information can be found at: https://thearcadiaproject.org/ where a description of the new 93-seat movie theater, a conference/event center, classrooms, and a café are described. The Visulite Theater in Staunton has been the only movie theater in town for a while and is supporting the efforts to get the new space launched to aid in a downtown revival.
Surely we can have a better main photo than a terrible blurry picture of one corner of the screen?
A fourth screen was added in July 1983. The Dixie closed as a movie theater on February 24, 2008.
The New theatre opened on June 16th, 1913. Grand opening ad posted.
Reopened as the New Dixie theatre on December 15th, 1936
Dixie theatre reopening Dec 15, 1936 The News Leader (Staunton, Virginia) Newspapers.com
Currently closed for renovations. Story here.
It appears from the article that the auditorium will remain a fourplex