Plaza Theatre (Palm Springs, California)
The Plaza Theatre is a historic theater located at 128 South Palm Canyon Drive in Palm Springs, California. It is an anchor of La Plaza (a.k.a. Palm Springs Plaza), a streetside collection of shops, one of the first planned shopping centers in Southern California, opened in 1936. From 1990 through 2014[1] the theatre housed The Fabulous Palm Springs Follies which was featured on ABC's 20/20, The Today Show, the New York Times, NPR[2] and other media since its founding.[3] There is currently a fundraising campaign to raise money to restore the historic building to its former glory and make it a theater that meets theatrical needs for today and tomorrow.[4]
Restoration project[edit]
Plans have been in the works to restore and reopen the Plaza Theater for several years. An official campaign, Save The Plaza Theatre, was launched in 2019,[13] but was paused during the initial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In October 2021, former Frasier producer David Lee announced a $5 million donation to the fund drive.[14] An anonymous donor also contributed an additional $2 million to the project.[4]
The Plaza Theatre is owned by the City of Palm Springs and the restoration project is managed by the Palm Springs Plaza Theatre Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization headed by JR Roberts. Restoration of the iconic building is set to begin in the summer of 2023.[15][4]