Plaza Live work reaches milestone as historic spire spins once more

Sixty years after it brought a touch of the Space Age to Orlando, the distinctive spire on top of The Plaza Live is spinning once more.

Applause and champagne greeted the return of the iconic feature in Orlando’s Milk District, east of downtown, Wednesday evening as city Mayor Buddy Dyer led a countdown to set the rejuvenated spire in motion.

“The sign is an icon and celebrates the history of Orlando,” said David Schillhammer, vice president of the Orlando Philharmonic Plaza Foundation, which is leading the Plaza Live renovations.

In his remarks, Dyer agreed.

“Anybody who grew up in Central Florida probably saw some of their first movies at the ‘rocking-chair theater,'” said the mayor, using an old Plaza Theatre nickname, as he recalled watching “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” there.

Named a historic landmark by the city of Orlando in 1997, the spire had fallen on hard times as its mechanics failed. In August, it was removed from the top of the building for a complete overhaul. A $500,000 historic-preservation grant from the Florida Department of State’s Division of Historical Resources helped fund the work, along with $100,000 from the Kay Hardesty Logan Foundation, said Mary Palmer, a past Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra board chair who recalled taking her children to performances in the theater decades ago.

The spire’s return to its former glory, with new lighting and other mechanics, is part of the overall multimillion renovation project by the Orlando Philharmonic Plaza Foundation. That project, which also calls for a new outdoor plaza with bar service, is still underway though the building is open once again on a limited basis.

Concerts resumed Jan. 9, and Judy Collins is scheduled to give a performance in the building’s main theater on Friday. New restrooms are open, and events will feature temporary bars while work continues at least for several months, Schillhammer said.

The Philharmonic’s Resonate festival next month will take place at the Winter Park Events Center.

The Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra bought the Plaza in 2013 and previously spent about $4.5 million on improvements such as building the organization’s offices and creating the Mary Palmer Room, a small theater named for the longtime orchestra supporter.

The theater already had a storied history: It opened in 1963 as the city’s first two-screen cinema and was known as “the rocking-chair theater” because of its unique seating for moviegoers. Wednesday night, Dyer recalled that mischievous moviegoers could kick the seat in front of them and knock fellow patrons right out of their rocker.

The modern-looking building was designed by architect Robert E. Collins of Miami, who also designed the “underwater” theater at Weeki Wachee and the 1938 Cameo Theater in Miami.

The Plaza Live later became a home to family-oriented stage shows and then a touring house for concerts and other performances.

The latest remake, which saw the main performance space gutted and rebuilt with expanded capacity for patrons, is funded in part with $10 million from Orange County through the tourist-development tax collected on hotel and other overnight stays. As part of that funding deal, the city of Orlando acquired the building and leases it back to the orchestra for $1 annual rent.

Other donors to the project include AdventHealth, AEG Presents and RBmarks Construction, Schillhammer said.

The Philharmonic is conducting its own fundraising to help with renovation costs. Wednesday, Orlando Philharmonic philanthropy director Jennifer Coolidge said about $1.5 million has been raised, and the nonprofit is seeking a minimum of another $500,000. Money raised over that amount will pay for other exterior improvements, such as landscaping.

On Wednesday, supporters celebrated how far the renovations have progressed as the spire slowly rotated, beaming “Plaza Theatre” in bright red capital letters.

“It took a lot of work to get to this point,” Schillhammer said. “We’re open for business.”

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