The historic Apollo Theater in Harlem is getting a big makeover that will include all areas of the theater from lobby to backstage. Even the historic marquee will get an upgrade.
The Theater opened in 1914 but didn’t get its current name until 1934. In 2024, The Apollo became the first venue to earn a Kennedy Center Honor.
Once the restoration is completed, the first thing theater attendees will notice is an expanded lobby with a café and bar that will be suitable for community gatherings. Inside the theater itself will be new seating and the backstage area will be upgraded and modernized.
Performances are scheduled to go on at the Apollo stages in the Victoria Theater and on the soundstage while renovations are going on in the main theater. The renovated Apollo is set to re-opn some time next summer.
Apollo President and CEO Michelle Ebanks spoke on the renovations saying, “today’s groundbreaking marks the beginning of a new chapter in The Apollo’s journey—a curtain drop in every sense of the word – taking us from a place of reverence to a place of relevance. As we prepare to renovate and reimagine this legacy space, we do so not to erase its history, but to elevate it. To honor the shoulders we stand on, while building a more modernized foundation for those who will come after us.”
This is the largest restoration, renovation, and modernization in The Apollo’s 90 year history.
The Apollo broke ground on the project June 30 and was marked by a ceremonial curtain drop.