An Ode to Edmonton’s First Movie Theatre

The year is 1929.

It’s Saturday and you’ve got some coins in your pocket and a few kids in tow. You head down Jasper Avenue towards 101 Street until you see it: the grand new Capitol Theatre, the first of its kind in Edmonton.

You shell out $0.15 for your ticket and $0.10 per kid and head inside to find a seat. Do you choose a row on the balcony or one below? With 1,110 seats, there’s a lot of space.

Either way, you’ll be able to hear the 20-piece orchestra in the pit beneath the screen, accompanying the silent film.

Alongside you are people from all walks of life. Cinema is just emerging as an art form and this theatre is generally an accessible option for entertainment, unlike, say the symphony or ballet.

Take Me to the Movies

The Capitol Theatre was a mainstay in Edmonton for decades until large-scale venues became unprofitable and it was ultimately knocked down in the ’70s.

But that’s not where its story ends.

In 2011, Fort Edmonton Park built a replica of Edmonton’s first movie theatre — although it’s far from identical.

“Fort Edmonton did its best to try and capture the ambiance of what the Capitol Theatre would’ve looked like in its prime,” says Owais Siddiqui, multicultural narratives supervisor for Fort Edmonton Park. “It was really to commemorate the roots of Edmonton’s arts and culture scene.”

For one, the new theatre’s scale is much smaller, with capacity for just over 200 people. When it first opened its doors, it was also equipped with 4D technology to accommodate continual screenings of Northern Lights, a short film about Edmonton’s history that culminated in real snow falling from the roof.

“That entire system took a lot of wear over the years,” Siddiqui says. “Very recently and in increments, Capitol Theatre has been renovated so that it can host more conventional cinema that doesn’t require the side panels of our auditorium to open up or anything falling from the ceiling.”

Capitol Screenings

The space now hosts film screenings — like Star Wars on May 4 or Christmas features over the holidays. But also other theatre and music productions use the stage as well. The Edmonton Jewish Film Festival screened all of its in-person films there earlier this month. A candlelight tribute to Fleetwood Mac slated for the summer is on the calendar, as well as an upcoming screening of Ghostbusters.

“We try to make the Capitol Theatre accessible to local production companies,” Siddiqui says. “It still commemorates the ambiance of the classic Capitol Theatre. It’s an environment that is really quite removed from many of the halls and theatres we would be otherwise accustomed to today.”

With the park officially opened for another season, the theatre is set to welcome an influx of visitors over the coming months. At the theatre, a series of short documentaries on Alberta in the ’20s — from the Amber Valley settlement of black pioneers to First World War pilot Wop May — run throughout the day.

“Once summer is underway, especially after Canada Day, we can expect upwards of 2,000 people to enter through the gates on a busy day,” Siddiqui says. “It’s quite lively and we try to offer something for everyone.”

Capitol Theatre
1920 Street, Fort Edmonton Park, Edmonton | fortedmontonpark.ca