Theatre Jacksonville (Jacksonville, USA)
Theatre Jacksonville
Theatre Jacksonville is a community theatre based in Jacksonville, Florida, United States. One of the oldest continually producing community theatres in the United States, its building, also known as the Little Theatre, was added to the National Register of Historical Places in 1991. Theatre Jacksonville is based in the neighborhood of San Marco. It puts on numerous productions throughout the year and runs a children's camp called Camp Theatre Jacksonville every summer.
The Little Theatre company was founded at Jacksonville, Florida in 1919 and then incorporated as "The Little Theatre of Jacksonville" in 1926. Cigar magnate Carl Swisher was the benefactor for a new building in the San Marco neighborhood, which was started in 1927. However, it was more than ten years before the first performance was staged at the new facility. On January 4, 1938, Boy meets Girl opened in what is now a historic U.S. theater located at 2032 San Marco Boulevard.
In early 1969, the name of the company was changed to "Theatre Jacksonville, Inc." and the theatre was re-incorporated. Mayor Hans Tanzler issued a proclamation naming Theatre Jacksonville as Jacksonville's "Official Theatre" in 1972, a distinction reconfirmed by all succeeding mayors.
On July 12, 1991, the Little Theatre building was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. The $500,000 Harold K. Smith Playhouse Endowment for facility maintenance was established in June, 1997. In October, 2000 the theatre Facade renovation was completed and the facility was formally dedicated as the Harold K. Smith Playhouse.