Avalon Regal’s Return Is Planned in Stages

A return to the Avalon Regal Theater is being planned room by room. The project’s current website identifies Grand Hall occupancy in 2027 as its first target, followed by full venue activation in 2028. That distinction is essential: a hall opening would be one stage in bringing the theater back, rather than proof that the entire auditorium is ready. [1]

Explore the building’s history in New Regal Theater in the Research Library.

An operating plan tied to the restoration

The first phase described by the project includes heating and cooling, electrical, and life-safety work. The proposed sequence uses event rental income from the hall to help fund the auditorium phase. These are the project team’s published objectives, not independently verified construction completions or measured revenue. [1]

Urban Lithograph’s interpretation is that the sequence connects a preservation problem with an operating problem. Restoring a large theater requires resources, while a usable portion of the building could give it a source of activity before all work is finished. The approach can only be assessed over time, as spaces become available and the next phase advances.

The atmosphere is part of the architecture

The city’s landmark account identifies John Eberson as architect and dates construction to 1926–1927. It describes an atmospheric movie palace in which the audience appears to sit in an imagined courtyard under a star-filled sky. The building was originally the Avalon and later took the New Regal name in homage to another Chicago theater. [2]

That identity depends on more than the survival of a stage and seats. Decorative surfaces, lighting, and the relationship between the audience and its surroundings participate in the experience. Restoring the auditorium therefore means recovering a designed environment as well as making a large room usable.

A centennial target, with milestones still ahead

The 1927 opening makes 2027 a centennial year, and the project uses that anniversary in its public campaign. Its detailed schedule, however, puts full auditorium activation in 2028. The more specific phase descriptions are a better guide than treating every reference to a 2027 reopening as a promise for the whole building. [1]

The operator gives its address as 1645 East 79th Street; the city’s landmark listing uses 1641 for the same theater. The map identifies the building footprint. Current public programs and access should be checked with the operator before travel. [1][2]

The most useful next updates will name the space involved and what has actually changed: completed work, authorized occupancy, a confirmed public event, or a functioning rental program. Those milestones would turn the published sequence into a documented return.