Cigar City Cinema: Tampa Goes to the Movies, 1897–1936
A new exhibit is coming to the Henry B. Plant Museum! 🎥🍿🤩
Cigar City Cinema: Tampa Goes to the Movies, 1897-1936, explores the evolution of the city’s moviegoing experience from the first short film exhibitions at the Tampa Bay Hotel Casino to the innovations in sound, camera techniques, and social commentary that defined the inaugural decade of film screenings at Tampa Theatre.
HOW TO VISIT: Opening October 3, 2026. The exhibition is included with regular Museum admission. For tickets, hours and visitor information, visit plantmuseum.com.
ABOUT THE EXHIBIT:
The dawn of movie magic began in December 1897 when 2000 people packed the opera house of the Tampa Bay Hotel Casino to see Biograph Company short films that appeared so lifelike audience members gasped. Cigar City Cinema gives modern audiences the opportunity to share this experience by
viewing some of these early films.
Soon, the Tampa Bay Hotel Casino introduced city residents to the first feature films, culminating in the sprawling epics of D.W. Griffith. Rare artifacts from the Museum of the Moving Image showcase the power of Griffith’s film as propaganda. The opening of Tampa Theatre in 1926 ushered in the golden age of Hollywood. The magnificent Wurlitzer organ and a full orchestra thrilled audiences in the final years of the silent film era.
Cigar City Cinema guides visitors through the sound revolution and the reactions of local audiences. Tampa Theatre’s gargoyles, statuary, and fabricated starry night sky induced awe, but its sheer opulence could be intimidating. Objects and ephemera on loan from Tampa Theatre reveal how theater employees and audience members redefined the movie palace to make it a beloved community institution and an indispensable part of local life.
Tampa Theatre will also present a series of films that are featured in the exhibit. The series will kick off with a matinee screening of Dracula on Sunday, October 25, 2026. Other showings include Oscar-winning films Sunrise and Grand Hotel. The exhibit itself features a rotating film presentation, opening with King Kong.
THANK YOU: Cigar City Cinema is graciously underwritten by The Bank of Tampa, the Betsy and Steve Chambers Family Foundation, Cogent Bank, the Henry B. Plant Museum Society, and Raymond James.
Cigar City Cinema: Tampa Goes to the Movies, 1897-1936, explores the evolution of the city’s moviegoing experience from the first short film exhibitions at the Tampa Bay Hotel Casino to the innovations in sound, camera techniques, and social commentary that defined the inaugural decade of film screenings at Tampa Theatre.
HOW TO VISIT: Opening October 3, 2026. The exhibition is included with regular Museum admission. For tickets, hours and visitor information, visit plantmuseum.com.
ABOUT THE EXHIBIT:
The dawn of movie magic began in December 1897 when 2000 people packed the opera house of the Tampa Bay Hotel Casino to see Biograph Company short films that appeared so lifelike audience members gasped. Cigar City Cinema gives modern audiences the opportunity to share this experience by
viewing some of these early films.
Soon, the Tampa Bay Hotel Casino introduced city residents to the first feature films, culminating in the sprawling epics of D.W. Griffith. Rare artifacts from the Museum of the Moving Image showcase the power of Griffith’s film as propaganda. The opening of Tampa Theatre in 1926 ushered in the golden age of Hollywood. The magnificent Wurlitzer organ and a full orchestra thrilled audiences in the final years of the silent film era.
Cigar City Cinema guides visitors through the sound revolution and the reactions of local audiences. Tampa Theatre’s gargoyles, statuary, and fabricated starry night sky induced awe, but its sheer opulence could be intimidating. Objects and ephemera on loan from Tampa Theatre reveal how theater employees and audience members redefined the movie palace to make it a beloved community institution and an indispensable part of local life.
Tampa Theatre will also present a series of films that are featured in the exhibit. The series will kick off with a matinee screening of Dracula on Sunday, October 25, 2026. Other showings include Oscar-winning films Sunrise and Grand Hotel. The exhibit itself features a rotating film presentation, opening with King Kong.
THANK YOU: Cigar City Cinema is graciously underwritten by The Bank of Tampa, the Betsy and Steve Chambers Family Foundation, Cogent Bank, the Henry B. Plant Museum Society, and Raymond James.
Where is it happening?
401 W Kennedy Blvd, Tampa, FL, United States, Florida 33606
Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.
Host or PublisherHenry Plant Museum
