The Roxy Theater

The 75-year-old Roxy Theater underwent restoration beginning in July 2017 with the theater opening in February 2018. Far Away Entertainment, a Bainbridge Island based company who specializes in first run and independent films with a claim to “real butter on your popcorn”, currently operates the theater. Jeff Brein, managing partner of Far Away Entertainment, has an extensive background in the entertainment industry working for years with the Walt Disney Company, but left to pursue a passion for small town theaters. Far Away is known for running the historic Lynwood theater in Bainbridge Island and the recently opened Admiral Theater in West Seattle, in addition to seven other theaters in the region.

As part of Sound West Group’s restoration effort, the Roxy marquee and blade sign will be re-created in the spirit of the original design, acting as center stage to Quincy Square. Sound West Group worked with Fernando Duarte Design, who specializes in theater and marquee restoration from the Art Deco period. In addition, the chandelier at the entrance was returned to its foyer and a top-of-the-line sound and projector system installed. The theater will showcase live shows put on by the local Admiral Theater Foundation and opportunities for community and non-profit performances via a licensing agreement with Roxy Bremerton, a not-for-profit corporation.

The Roxy Theater was originally opened on May 29^th, 1941, and was designed by Seattle architect Bjarne Moe, one of the Pacific coast’s foremost theater architects at the time. The theater is a classical Streamline Moderne, a late type of Art Deco architecture and design that emerged in the 1930s. Its architectural style emphasized curving forms, long horizontal lines, and nautical elements. Still in the theater is a 35-foot maritime mural composed of photos, by famed Northwest photographer Asahel Curtis, which depicts the White Fleet of 1908 along with the Bremerton Navy Yard in the background. It was one of the largest photo murals ever produced in the Pacific Northwest at the time. Some notable visitors to the Roxy Theater include Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra.