St. Paul’s 100 Year-Old Venue Reopens

Minnesota’s Palace Theatre, which has seen a renovation worth more than $15 million, is set to reopen for public use this year. 

The 2,500-capacity venue opened as a vaudeville house in 1916. It has been mostly closed and often abandoned for the last 40 years and its renovation has been part of Mayor Chris Coleman’s vision to reinvigorate downtown St. Paul.

– Palace Theater
Saint Paul, Minn.

“After 40 years of vacancy, this 100-year-old building in the heart of downtown will be contributing to the economic vitality of our city for decades to come,” Mayor Coleman said in a statement.

The venue will be booked by First Avenue and Jam Productions, which will also be producing the shows. “There’s a lot going on already,” Jerry Mickelson of Jam Productions told Pollstar, noting the venue’s proximity to Xcel Energy Center and other existing performance sites.

“This just helps fill in the puzzle to create a vibrant, downtown St. Paul.” Mickelson said the venue wasn’t targeting any specific demographic and would book comedy, spoken word, magic, music or anything else that would sell tickets.

The public was invited in for a “sneak peek” on Dec. 16, at which they saw the nearly finished venue, were treated to free hot cocoa and a performance by Jeremy Messersmith, the Star Tribune reported.

Parts of the historic building have been left unchanged to preserve the venue’s historic legacy, architect Tom Stromsodt told MinnesotaPublic Radio.

 “It’s a classic ‘if these walls could talk’ situation,” he said. The first show announced was Xcel Energy Center on March 26, although other performances will formally open the venue earlier that month.