Castro Theatre Preservation Foundation

The Castro Theatre is a 501 (c)(3) film theatre with a long history in the Castro neighborhood. Since its creation in 1922, it has served as a mecca for film lovers and for the LGBTQ+ community. It has hosted countless film screenings, film festivals, and other events honoring the rich film history of San Francisco. It also has deep roots in the LGBTQ+ community, especially during the height of the AIDS crisis, where it served as a haven of grief and remembrance of the people that were lost. 

The renovation and restoration of the space will adapt and modernize the century-plus old theatre and ensure that it can become not only a state of the art film theatre, but a more flexible entertainment venue. Some of the proposed updates include cleaning, restoring, and repairing the historic decor; updating the seating arrangement to accommodate different types of events and to ensure the seats are in line with the ADA; and updating the film screening infrastructure to ensure that everything is state of the art. 

Once the theatre has reopened, we plan to ensure the continued legacy of film programming at the theater. This includes dedicating at least 70 days to film screenings and to hosting major film festivals. We are also in the process of  installing a brand new, custom-designed organ that will faithfully preserve the musical tradition of the original Castro Wurlitzer and significantly expand it with 21st-century technology. By doing these things, we hope to maintain the Theatre’s hundred plus year legacy of film programming while also ushering it firmly into the 21st century. 

Your donation will ensure that this historic space can reopen and continue to serve as a beacon of light and culture in the Castro neighborhood. 

If you would like to mail a donation via check, please send to: