Opening October 3, 2026, a special exhibit at the Henry B. Plant Museum celebrates the 100th anniversary of the historic Tampa Theatre by bringing to life the early years of movie magic in Tampa. Cigar City Cinema: Tampa Goes to the Movies, 1897-1936, will run through February 28, 2026.
In 1897, the city’s first theatrical presentation of films took place at the Tampa Bay Casino, a 2,000-seat entertainment venue that Henry Plant constructed on the grounds of the Tampa Bay Hotel. For the next dozen years, the local community watched in awe as the Casino showcased the dramatic evolution of movies from shorts to the first feature-length films to the sprawling epics of D.W. Griffith. Cigar City Cinema presents some of these early films alongside original lobby cards, souvenir programs, and rare ephemera on loan from the Museum of the Moving Image and other institutions.
Tampa Theatre, an opulent picture palace, ushered in the golden age of Hollywood in 1926. The magnificent Wurlitzer organ and a full orchestra thrilled audiences in the final years of the silent film era. The exhibit guides visitors through the impact of sound pictures and other revolutions in the filmgoing experience in Tampa. In its first decade of operation, the Tampa Theatre introduced horror films, musicals, screwball comedies, and the social commentary of pioneer filmmakers such as King Vidor. The exhibit features original artifacts on loan from Tampa Theatre. It features a rotating film presentation, beginning with King Kong.
Celluloid crafted a new relationship between actors and audiences, and Tampa residents incorporated the iconic image of Charlie Chaplin and other early stars into cherished community traditions. Films influenced fashion and hairstyles, sometimes creating generational conflict. But the relationship between movies and moviegoers in Tampa wasn’t one-sided. Local audiences transformed the functions of early theaters such as the Casino and Tampa Theatre, creating entirely new social spaces.
The Henry B. Plant Museum is pleased to partner with Tampa Theatre to present a series of films during the run of Cigar City Cinema: Tampa Goes to the Movies, 1897-1935. Visit plantmuseum.com or tampatheatre.org for more information.
Cigar City Cinema is graciously underwritten by:
The Betsy and Steve Chambers Family Foundation
