In 1925 the Historic Palace Theatre was built not for the aristocracy, but instead to provide the people of Lockport with a Grade A movie theatre. This desire to serve the community as a whole has been the foundation of the Palace and a key cornerstone of the Palace Theatre mission statement: 

Since 1925 the Palace has served the community in different several facets for several decades, including a first run movie house, vaudeville playhouse and community venue. In 1999, a group of community-minded individuals began renting the theatre, with the hopes of bringing live productions back to the stage. In 2003, these individuals worked tirelessly to gain non-profit status for the theatre, returning it to its origins of being truly for all the people of Lockport and the surrounding areas.

Similarly, to how community members felt Lockport deserved a Grade A movie house in 1925, a group of dedicated volunteers felt that the Palace deserved to be returned to its original grandeur, with the necessary updates to ensure the theatre to continue being an economic driver in Downtown Lockport. In 2016, the Palace was awarded $423,000 from Empire State Development which allowed to the theatre to embark on their Act II: A Grand Restoration Campaign. During this 4 year, multi-million-dollar campaign, nearly every element of the theatre was restored, enhanced, and preserved; this includes updated theatrical rigging, restored interior paint & plaster work, an expanded orchestra pit, brand new seats and updated electrical sources. These restorations and enhancements allow the Palace to operate more efficiently, ensuring a professional experience for patrons, performers, and renters- providing the community with a venue they can truly take pride in.

While the past few years have presented unprecedented challenges for everyone, especially those involved in the arts, the Palace Theatre was able to pivot to continue serving the Lockport community. This pivot was made possible by the enhancements made during our Act II: A Grand Restoration. With state-of-the-art rigging, brand new seats and enhanced technical capabilities, the Palace is more attractive than ever to outside rentals. This was felt most astutely during our 2021-2022 calendar year when we featured over 17 new rentals, that we hadn’t had in the 2018-2019 calendar year. In additional to our rental growth, thanks to these improvements we have also had the opportunity to expand our in-house production calendar and bring on a third full time employee.