Aztec Theatre

They have live music and stand-up shows there mostly now.

It’s too bad so many wonderful theaters have stopped showing movies. I saw Dr. Zhivago back in early 1967, while I was in combat medic training at Fort Sam. It was a memorable Sunday afternoon I still recall to this day.

I spent a day photographing the Aztec in March 2019 courtesy of Live Nation. You can see all the photos, plus the historic documents and theatre history I pulled together, at historictheatrephotos.com/aztec.

If you look at the current site, there is a photo of a large statue – more like an Aztec god, I think.

The newspaper today, states that the company renting the theater, has bought it. Meaning more of the same performance/shows. Some acts are obscure. Apparently, it is doing well, or the renters wouldn’t have “gone for it.”

From their seating charts, it looks like a fair amount of the orchestra seating has been removed for standing room, tables and the bar.

Here is the official web site of the Aztec Theatre. There are a few music events scheduled this month, but fewer for November and December. At least the place is open.

Just chiming in to say that many of us in the city continue to keep our fingers crossed that someone with vision will purchase this building and put it to proper use.

The status of this theater needs to be changed to “Closed”. I just passed by the Aztec and the marquee says that it is available to lease. So sad as the theater has been completely and beautifully restored. This theater thrives on tourism yet their “programming” since restoration has been horrible. I’m not the least bit surprised that it failed. The good thing is that I have no fear that the theater has any chance at demolition as it is one the city’s true landmarks and one the country’s best and very few remaining theaters of this Indian style.

I walked by The Aztec last week, and they still had the musical country show poster in the window, but there was no sign of life. Everyone in the tourist industry knew that the special effects/IMAX-ish set-up wouldn’t work after restoration, and neither would the country show that followed. A Mexican musical show, minus gimmicks, MIGHT work for a while. Or, a venue for comedians…….The Majestic Theater books a lot of big-name comedians, but it seats more people, as The Aztec lost half (?) of its seating during the restoration. I was surprised to read that it originally had 3,000 seats – seems a lot smaller than The Majestic, even back then.

Actually, “gimmicks” sometimes work with the type of tourist who comes to SA – just not what anybody has tried. Ripley’s has enough of that stuff downtown, anyway. It would take Disney or Universal to pull it off successfully….

This site lists the Aztec as “showing movies”. It must not be a regular occurrence, as their web site makes no reference to films, of any type. The silent “Phantom” film showing, indicated in the photo above, must have been a one-shot deal. I think that the only way that the Aztec can actually make money, is to exhibit special films on a regular basis, and NOT “silent” pictures. San Antonio allowed Ripley’s to take over Alamo Plaza with a variety of questionable “venues”, and the last thing that the adjacent River Walk needs, is another gimmicky showcase. The nearby restored Majestic and Empire Theaters, are controlled by a single entity, and supported by the non-profit Las Casas Foundation. They host travelling shows, and various entertainment groups. The restored Aztec has never found “the proper footing,” and was initially promoted by the nearby flagship Drury Hotel property on the River Walk – for a while, anyway.

Actually, it was not completely restored to its former glory – in the theater section, quite a few liberties were taken, to shoe-horn in that ridiculous special-effects theater concept, and then the pseudo-Opryland thing that followed.