The Avalon Theatre began life as the Chevy Chase Theatre in February 1923, when patrons could watch a silent film for thirty cents. Shortly after it opened, the theater became a cornerstone of the northwest D.C. community. In a time before sprawling suburbs and gigantic multiplexes, the local theater on Connecticut Avenue was a place for families to go for enjoyable entertainment.

Throughout the 20th century, the theater changed hands and decoration multiple times, reflecting the architectural preferences and technological advances of the decades. By March 2001, when Loews Cineplex closed the theater, the Avalon was the oldest continuously operating movie house in Washington.

The theater was designed by the local architectural firm of Frank Upman and Percy C. Adams. The firm designed many public and private buildings in Washington, yet the Chevy Chase was its sole theater. The brick, concrete, and steel building was designed in the Classical Revival style. The metal canopy style marquee was at that time surrounded with scalloped glass and cresting. Façade decoration included Corinthian pilasters–or flattened columns–and motifs of rosettes, festoons, leaves, and waves. Arched windows were embellished with fluting, floral motifs and more rosettes. The arched lobby ceiling featured intricate molding and medallions. Many of the theater’s exterior patterns also decorated its auditorium, with a lighted dome containing a large rosette featured prominently in the center. Luckily, much of the original ornamentation continues to adorn the theater’s interior and exterior to this day.

Inside the auditorium, a 1922 pipe organ from the Robert Morton Organ Company of California provided film accompaniment. In the mid-1920s, it was played by Kurt Hetzel, a Washington Symphony conductor. Palladian window-style organ wings flanked the theater’s small stage. With the advent of “talkies” in 1927, theaters around the country had to quickly adapt to the new technology. The Chevy Chase was “wired for sound” in March 1929, and the organ wings, no longer needed for their original purpose, were used to house sound equipment.

Originally seating over 1,200, the theater would have had an even greater capacity had original plans to include a balcony been carried out. For the first half of its life, the theater’s lobby was flanked by not one but two retail spaces. Occupants included a dairy, confectioners, jewelers, hair salon, and most recently a bookstore. On the second floor—behind the façade windows—another retail space housed the Chevy Chase School of Music and later a ballet studio.

Emanuel Stutz’s Chevy Chase Land Company was the Chevy Chase Theatre’s original owner. In the mid-1920s, the theater entered a new phase in its life. It was purchased by the Stanley-Crandall Company, formed by the merger between Harry Crandall, who also owned the Lincoln and the Tivoli, and the Stanley Company, a Philadelphia chain that owned several Washington theaters. Soon, the Stanley-Crandall Company became part of Warner Brothers, in a merger that helped Warner expand the distribution of its films. In 1929, the name of the theater was changed to the Avalon and it became one of Warner Brothers’ many Washington neighborhood theaters. Films would run at the Avalon after they opened downtown at the Earle (now called the Warner), then played at the Silver in Silver Spring, Maryland, and the Uptown.

Warner’s gave the theater a modern Art Deco look in 1937 with a significant renovation. Exterior additions included a vertical electric sign–still in use today–and a streamline metal marquee covering. The entrance was altered to include Formica and glass doors and a stainless steel box office. A sleek glass tile called Vitrolite adorned the façade in red and black. The lobby was altered with period chandeliers and paneled walls of wood and Formica. In the auditorium, new seating reduced the theater’s seating capacity to less than 800. The most significant alteration in terms of patron comfort, given Washington’s climate, was the installation of air conditioning.

The Avalon became part of RKO Stanley Warner in 1960, a move which brought the return of “first run” films after many years as a third- or even fifth-tier neighborhood theater. In the 1960s, the theater’s interior received yet another remodeling and new seating. Significant alterations in 1970 included the construction of a small 200-seat theater, replacing the dance studio on the second floor. One of the stores on the first floor was removed to expand the lobby in order to provide access to the upstairs theater. Metal coverings were placed over the façade and windows to prevent light from entering this theater. Also in the 1970s, an acoustic tile drop ceiling and walls of drywall and mirrors were added to the lobby. Ultimately, many early architectural details were preserved underneath these alterations, although that was not their intended purpose.

A 1985 renovation included the addition of a mural by Virginia artist Dana Westring, painted on the auditorium’s central dome. It features the god Mercury floating in a pale blue sky while casting a reel of film to a cherub. This design retained the original round rosette design of the dome. By this time, the Pedas Brothers, owners of the Circle Theater, were in charge of the Avalon. In addition to decoration, their upgrades included new sound systems and the addition of a larger screen, which further reduced the seating in the main theater to 660. In 1988, the Pedas Brothers sold the movie operation to Cineplex Odeon.

The corporate mergers of chain theaters once again influenced the Avalon’s fate. Although ownership transferred to John Kyle in 1996, Cineplex Odeon—which later merged with Loews—continued to operate the theater. In conjunction with their bankruptcy declaration in early 2001, Loews Cineplex Odeon not only closed the theater, but also stripped it of its seats and projection equipment. The community feared that the Avalon was destined to become a chain drugstore or clothing store, like other neighborhood theaters including the Biograph, Ontario, and MacArthur. In the mid-1990s, an application for landmark status was successful in granting protection for the Avalon’s exterior. Although the Avalon could not be razed in the name of urban renewal like many of Washington’s downtown movie palaces, historic preservation protection of the exterior did not guarantee the theater’s survival. At the time of its closing in March 2001, the future looked bleak for the Avalon.

But in vintage Hollywood style, the beloved old theater – left empty and abandoned and threatened by the mighty wrecking ball – was rescued by the community.

Neighbors were outraged that a theater that was thriving one day could be closed the next. In March 2001, the film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was doing record business at the Avalon. But when Loews Cineplex filed for bankruptcy, it abruptly closed the theater and stripped it of its seats, screens, projection and sound equipment, concession stand, and anything else they could remove.

From the sidelines, neighbors watched as the owner tried to lease the building to another movie exhibitor. But the high cost of repairing and re-outfitting the theater made it a tough sell. They watched as he leased the theater to Douglas Jemal of Douglas Development and he placed a lease-available banner on the Avalon marquee. Fearing that the Avalon would be lost forever, retired librarian Bob Zich posted a message on the neighborhood list serve asking if anyone was interested in helping to save the theater. Several neighbors responded, got together, and formed “Friends of the Avalon.” They were determined that the Avalon would not go down without a fight.

In November 2001, the group incorporated as a nonprofit organization and the Avalon Theatre Project (ATP) was born. Its mission was to reopen the Avalon as a movie house and community resource. Over the next several months, Bob Zich and neighbors Pat Fleming, Teresa Grana, Jennifer Kaplan, Bill Oberdorfer, and Alan Zich worked to rally support.

In March 2002, the theater was still empty and neighbors became concerned that the building would become a blight on the community. Ward 3 Council member Kathy Patterson and Ward 4 Council member Adrian Fenty convened a March 21, 2002 meeting with Douglas Jemal and ATP Board Members, along with Tony Gittens, Executive Director of the Arts and Humanities Commission, and Eric Price, Deputy Mayor for Economic Development. As a result of the meeting, ATP secured a commitment from Jemal to allow the community time to develop a viable business package to reopen the theater.

On April 3, 2002, a call for volunteers and donors attracted more than 200 people to the Chevy Chase Community Center across the street from the theater. The Avalon Theatre Project presented its plan and neighbors shared memories of the theater, filled enrollment sheets, and donated more than $2200. Local filmmaker Aviva Kempner made an impassioned plea for support, explaining that she moved to the neighborhood for two reasons: Politics & Prose and the Avalon. With enormous community support, the Project forged ahead.

From that day on, hundreds of area residents signed petitions, donated money, and volunteered their time. Fundraising began in earnest with meetings in neighbors’ homes, Saturday morning fundraisers under the theater’s marquee, a Sneak Preview/Open House at the theater, a meeting with local business owners, sales at Politics & Prose, “Casablanca Night” at the American City Diner, and a campaign to sell commemorative seat plaques.

More than $200,000 was raised in the immediate community alone. The neighboring businesses gave repeatedly in money, goods, and services. ATP secured the endorsements and support of several allied organizations, including the Chevy Chase Citizens Association, Historic Chevy Chase, ANC 3G, Chevy Chase Foundation, Main Street Chevy Chase, the Cultural Alliance, and the Cultural Development Corporation. Additional funding came from the City, The George Foundation, the Blaustein Foundation, and others.

By September 2002, Douglas Jemal was sufficiently impressed with ATP’s plan and widespread support. He agreed to lease the theater to ATP at a reduced rate and work as partners to create a first-class showcase theater and return the Avalon to its original glory. The restoration process began in October 2002.

For the next several months, an extraordinary team—some paid, most pro-bono—worked tirelessly to restore the theater. Neighbors watched with eager anticipation as the Avalon was slowly transformed: first the auditorium, then the lobby, and finally the exterior.

During that time, experienced theater operator Paul Sanchez was contracted to run the movie operation and Jill Bernstein and Muriel Watkins were added to the Board. ATP also entered into an agreement with the Latin American Youth Center, one of the city’s leading nonprofit agencies, to open a Ben & Jerry’s Scoop Shop in the retail space adjacent to the theater.

Major support came in a grant from the American Legacy Foundation, a national public health foundation dedicated to building a world where young people reject tobacco and anyone can quit. The foundation and the Avalon agreed to become partners and develop the theater as a national model in the use of public service announcements, research, and publicity to promote healthy, smoke-free lifestyles in a community movie theater setting.

On April 22, 2003, the Avalon Theatre Project proudly unveiled a beautifully restored theater, combining the best of old architecture with state-of-the art sound, screen, projection, and comfortable new seats. The revitalized theater now offers exciting and diverse programming that includes outstanding independent, foreign, and documentary films, classics, and the best commercial films. It also hosts film festivals, as well as special programs for seniors and children.