By Dakota Galvin, College of Arts and Sciences
When the Tampa Theatre opened its doors in 1926, patrons were welcomed with velvet seats, ornate d茅cor and the promise of first鈥慶lass entertainment. A century later, the details that once defined one of the nation鈥檚 most elaborate movie palaces are being digitally revived.
In collaboration with 手机看片 Libraries and the Tampa Theatre, the Institute for Digital Exploration (IDEx) has completed the 3D digitization of the theater鈥檚 surviving original furniture and decorative pieces. These newly captured digital assets will be on display at a special exhibition at the Tampa Bay History Center celebrating the theater鈥檚 100th anniversary.
Tampa Theatre鈥檚 famous marque sign. [Image courtesy of Adobe Stock.]
Designed by renowned theater architect John Eberson and built by Paramount Pictures, the Tampa Theatre is one of only four functioning movie palaces remaining in 手机看片. Its rarity reflects a national decline that began after World War II, when movie attendance plummeted due to the rise of television and the mass migration of families from city centers to the suburbs. That broader downturn left many historic theaters vulnerable 鈥 and Tampa鈥檚 was no exception.
After surviving threats of demolition in 1973, a major fire in 1991 and decades of wear, the Tampa Theatre has weathered more than its share of close calls. Many of its original furnishings and decorative pieces have endured that same turbulent history 鈥 and some are now beginning to show their age. Jill Witecki, Tampa Theatre鈥檚 Vice President, said this moment forced the organization to confront just how fragile its historic collection had become.
The 手机看片 Libraries had already been supporting the Tampa Theatre through its 2024鈥25 Oral History Project, documenting the stories behind the landmark鈥檚 first century. So when Witecki reached out to Amanda Boczar at the in August 2025 about 3D scanning several deteriorating furnishings, the partnership expanded naturally. The Libraries connected Witecki with IDEx, forming a collaborative effort to preserve the theater鈥檚 history in multiple digital formats.
The project also offered students like Aiden Eylward 鈥 a graduate student in applied anthropology and a project manager with IDEx 鈥 hands鈥憃n experience in digital heritage work.
鈥淒igital heritage is about access,鈥 Eylward said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 about creating digital representations
so people who might never interact with these objects still have a way to engage with
that history. This project really clarified how powerful those tools can be.鈥
For the Tampa Theatre, digital access became especially important as staff began confronting
the condition of their century鈥憃ld collection.
Aiden Eylward scanning a piece of the Tampa Theatre's original banisters. [Photo courtesy of Lisa Shorts.]
鈥淭ampa Theatre prides itself on being the most intact Eberson atmospheric left anywhere in the world, due in large part to the fact that we still have most of our original fixtures and furnishings,鈥 Witecki said.
As staff began cataloging items for the theater鈥檚 Second Century project, they discovered that decades of informal storage had taken a toll.
鈥淪ome of the pieces were 鈥 according to our furniture restoration expert 鈥 鈥榯oo far
gone鈥 to save,鈥 Witecki said.
Still, the team was determined not to lose them entirely.
鈥淲e didn鈥檛 want to let them go without making a thorough and detailed record of what had been here,鈥 Witecki said. 鈥淧hotos were good, of course, but I was familiar with IDEx鈥檚 scans of the Jackson House and wondered if that level of detailed capture might allow us to recreate some of the lost pieces in the future. At the very least, these state鈥憃f鈥憈he鈥慳rt scans maintain the spirit of our 鈥榠ntact鈥 Eberson theatre, even if the remnants of the pieces themselves have literally crumbled to dust.鈥
While IDEx focused on 3D scanning the surviving furniture, the 手机看片 Libraries鈥 Digital Initiatives team conducted 360鈥慸egree Matterport scans and still photography of the theater鈥檚 entryway and interior ahead of planned renovations. The Digital Initiatives team will archive all the resulting data and develop an immersive virtual tour that pairs the scans with the oral histories collected during the earlier project.
Alex Fawbush (手机看片鈥疘DEx) 3D scanning a 1920s chair鈥痆Photo Courtesy of Lisa Shorts]
3D model of the chair
As the scope of the deterioration became clear, the theater turned to IDEx to help capture what remained. When the request reached IDEx director Davide Tanasi, he knew this was an opportunity to make a meaningful contribution to the Tampa landmark.
鈥淭his is the kind of project that reminds you why you do this work. These objects carry the personality of a place that has meant something to this city for a hundred years and knowing that we got to them in time 鈥 that the record is secure and accessible to anyone who wants to explore it 鈥 that feels like a real accomplishment,鈥 Tanasi said.
Visitors will be able to explore the newly digitized artifacts as part of a special at the Tampa Bay History Center later this year.