Beach Theatre reopening Friday in St. Pete Beach

Beach Theatre?s grand reopening Friday

More than a decade after it closed, the newly renovated Beach Theatre in St. Pete Beach officially reopens Friday. FOX 13?s Kailey Tracy reports.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - The historic Beach Theatre in St. Pete Beach reopens on Friday evening after it was closed for more than a decade.

It first opened in 1940, but has been closed since 2012. Then, in 2024, Hannah Hockman bought it and took it over.

Hockman’s family has its own history with the theater. It was a date night spot for her parents, and she went to college down the street at Eckerd, where she studied theater. Hockman says she knew the theater could be amazing and wanted to bring it back to life.

"I first heard about this place in 2017," she said. "I was over at the Gulf Beaches Historical Museum over in Pass-a-Grille for a field trip with Eckerd College and that's when I first heard about this. I was so excited to learn that there was a theater in town, but unfortunately, the next words out of the museum curator's mouth were, ‘I'm not sure if they've torn it down yet,’" Hockman said.

"So, that just sent me down a rabbit hole. Like, what did that mean? How can we get this place reopened? That was back in 2017. So here, 2025, we're finally getting this place open. It's crazy," she said.

"I first came inside actually in 2023. That was the first time I got to be able to walk in the doors. I know it sounds crazy, but I actually put in a bid on it in 2021 without even seeing it, but I know a lot of people did. A lot of people wanted to be involved in this project and get it reopened. Unfortunately, in 2021, when I put in a bid, I was the runner up. I was $2,000 short and I just kind of thought that would be it, kind of put the dream on the back burner a little bit," Hockman said. "I went off and had a good career directing and producing and having fun in theater and then I got the call from that owner that he was ready to sell," she said.

Dig deeper:

Hockman took it over in 2024, purchasing it for $1 million. She and her family found old movie posters and the original red marquee letters inside the building when they bought it. They donated several of the posters. They also donated the projector they found in the theater that weighed hundreds of pounds to the state theater in Plant City that restored it.

"We have changed quite literally everything in the space. The space has been abandoned for about 13 years now. So, it needed a lot of love. It's also an 85-year-old building. And 85 years ago, it wasn't exactly meant for modern day life," she said. "We've ripped up the foundation. We've gotten a new roof. All new electrical, plumbing, mechanical … literally everything in here is new except for the exterior, which we just put some paint on, freshen it up, put the marquee back up," she said.

The journey, though, hasn’t been without setbacks. 

The 26-year-old says Hurricane Debby hit on the first day of renovations. Then came Hurricanes Helene and Milton. They’d just ripped up the original foundation before Helene. The storm flooded the theater with six feet of water. 

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"Luckily, Milton blew out our back wall. It offered great ventilation. You know, when you get three hurricanes in a month and a half, you have to find the silver lining," Hockman said.

Hockman said she hopes The Beach Theatre reopening also brings more people to surrounding businesses, businesses that have been hurting thanks to the hurricanes. 

Friday’s show starts at seven p.m. and is sold out. They’ll open with about 30 minutes of live music from a local musician, followed by a 40-minute documentary about the renovations. Lunar Speedboat Productions put together the documentary called "A New Wave: Revival of Beach Theatre."

There are also two showings Saturday, one Sunday and one Monday. You can get tickets on the theater’s website.