Historical Romance Theater
Rexburg, Madison County
- Grant: 2011, 2021 – Restoring the front doors
Location: 12 North Center, Rexburg, ID 83440
The Rex Theater, with 420 seats and ornate decorative terracotta, opened in February 1917 as the state’s first major theater, hosting traveling vaudeville performances and silent films. The theater was closed and later remodeled for a period during the Great Depression. Budgetary constraints and changes in public taste led to a wholesale change in style for the reborn Romance Theater. In place of the over-the-top grandeur of the original Beaux Arts style, the architecture shifted to a more utilitarian ‘budget Art Deco’ design, focusing on creating a pleasant atmosphere and state-of-the-art viewing experience for patrons.
After 94 years of continuous use, the theater closed. The City of Rexburg, after purchasing the Theater in 2005, has invested more than $175,000 into the restoration of the building and plans to reopen the Romance Theater as a center of cultural arts and community entertainment.
