GUSMAN CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS
OLYMPIA THEATRE

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Gusman Center for the Performing Arts

The Olympia Theater opened in 1926 as a silent movie palace and amazed the public with its stunning Moorish architecture, perfect acoustics and simulated night sky, complete with wafting clouds and twinkling stars. It also achieved fame as the first air-conditioned building in the South. The theater owes its distinctive character to architect John Eberson, the master of “atmospheric” theater design, and it is one of the few Eberson theaters around the world still standing.

South Florida business tycoon and philanthropist Maurice Gusman saved the aging theater and the adjacent Olympia Office Building from demolition and donated them to the City of Miami in 1975. The complex was renamed the Gusman Center for the Performing Arts in his honor. Thanks to extensive restorations in the 1970s, overseen in part by famed architect Morris Lapidus, designer of the Fontainebleu Hotel and Lincoln Road Pedestrian Mall, the theater was named to the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.

Again in 1990, further major restauration was done. Restoration of Eberson’s design scheme, including original colors and finishes, was a top priority of the construction plan. Following detailed analysis, decorative painters restored the original, vibrant paint scheme to the decorative plasterwork throughout the theater. Seventies-vintage plastic seating was replaced with wood-and-brass seats boasting historically appropriate detailing. Even the new carpeting was custom-loomed to match the 1926 original.

Today, as restoration work has been completed, Miami’s most beloved cultural venue has retained its stature in a downtown that continues its own transformation. Downtown Miami is once again becoming a place to live, work, shop and play, and the Gusman Center is at the heart of the action – just as it was in 1926.

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Downtown Visitor Centre

The Downtown Miami Partnership maintains a Downtown Visitors Center in the theatre's front lobby. Free literature about the theatre as well as downtown shops, restaurants, entertainment and historic sites is available.
Visitors Center Hours
Monday 12:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Tuesday-Saturday 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Guided Tours
To view the theater's front lobby, simply drop in during regular Visitor Center hours. To tour other areas of the theater, including the auditorium, call the theatre's administrative office 24 hours in advance so that theatre staff may be present to escort you. Group tours available upon request.

Parking
No assigned parking. On-street parking and numerous privately operated lots and garages are available in the neighborhood.

Bus/Metrorail services
Gusman Center is located in downtown Miami on Flagler Street.
C (103)From 41st. Street, Miami Beach via Collins and Washington Avenue to downtown SE 1st. Ave. Every 20 mins.
S (119) From Sunny Isles via Collins Avenue and Alton Road to downtown SE 1st. Ave. Every 20 mins.
Metrorail alight at Government Center and take Metromover (inner loop) to the NE 1st Street stop. The theater is located 1½ blocks south of the station.