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Coronado Theater

The second "grand theater," built after the Midway Theater, was the Coronado Theater. Built in 1925 by Holm Page Company, the Coronado's final price tag exceeded 1.5 million dollars. To put an investment of this size in perspective, the theater's owner Willard Van Matre spent more than was budgeted that year by the city of Rockford for all of its projects and services combined. This, however, was not necessarily unusual in an era where private money was utilized more frequently than public funds for construction projects and other services. The era of big government was still several decades away.

With a "starry night" ceiling featuring mechanically projected rolling clouds, a massive Barton organ, an electronically elevated orchestra pit and state of the art sound system, the Coronado was ready to host both stage and screen productions.

The Coronado presented live and film productions for much of the century until the building reached a state of disrepair that precluded its use. However, in the late 90's, plans for a $18.5 million restoration project to preserve and renovate the theater began, started by the Friends of the Coronado. Rockford community members supported the restoration by donating nearly half of the required funds.