Downtown’s Capri Theater getting a new lease on life

“There is magic in the old and magic in the new; the trick is to successfully combine the two.” —A.D. Posey

One of the grand ladies of the downtown scene is prepping to make a splashy return to Shreveport nightlife this month.

The Capri, located at 620 Milam Street, is putting the finishing touches on a significant renovation to rise as a special events space for live music, movies and more. Originally built as the Saenger Theatre in 1906, it has lived on as a movie house, nightclub and event space.

Tim Huck, the owner, said the architectural heritage is something that is important to him.

“The perception of downtown and just a thriving downtown is equally important to me. I spent about six years on the DDA [Downtown Development Authority].

“I went to a city council meeting a couple of years ago, and people were talking about downtown, how it’s not safe.

“Downtown doesn’t really have a crime problem. It has a perception problem. The only way to fix the perception is to get people to come down, because perception becomes reality. If I can get people to come downtown and they see that it’s not unsafe, it’s the only way to change their perception. The only way to get people to come down there is to give them things to do.”

Huck said that John Lomax, his operations and creative director, and Joseph Lacey, the construction project manager, have all been in the entertainment business for a long time.

“People are going to be pleasantly pleased at what they are going to see. You get into the Capri building, and you see the craftsmanship and the attention to detail they put into building that place. They basically made it as they went. To build those buildings in that way is just extremely impressive to me.”

Preserving those structures is important to the team. “The building is just as beautiful today, if not more as it was [in the 70s],” Huck said. “So, you mix all that together, and I just feel like we were the right group to do this and for it to work for Shreveport.”

Lomax said the best place to find out more right now is on the Capri Facebook site: https://www.facebook.com/thecaprishreveport.

“Our first event is going to be Aug. 23; that’s Saturday,” Lomax said. “It’s Cos-Kira, the official afterparty for Geek’d Con. It’s a cosplay rave party. That’s going to have just a celebration of all that is geekdom.

“After that, we’ll start running our musical acts. The weekend after that is an electronic music artist called the Whiddler.”

Lomax said, despite its age, the building is very versatile in its new incarnation. “We can accommodate anything from a sweet 16 party all the way through, for example, the Highland Coronation Bal will be here.

“We can do events that have alcohol, that are alcohol-free or that are mixed. Think of us as the Municipal or The Strand, just a little bit smaller. So, bands and acts that wouldn’t typically perform at a 1,500-2,000-seat venue, we have something to offer them.

“And for your corporate Christmas parties, your family gatherings, for product launches, for training sessions, that’s our day-to-day.

“We do have a really nice, full stage now, basically a 24’ by 36’ stage. The rest of the building has an open layout. That way, we can have a flexible space. If you wanted to have a big dinner with eight-top rounds and do a seated dinner, we could do that. If you wanted to do a corporate training with classroom tables facing forward, we could do that. If you wanted to do theatre-style seating for a dance recital, a movie screening, or a private viewing of a sports event, we can accommodate that — stage plays, etc. For a small production, we’d be a great place for that.

“And of course, we can accommodate a party format with high-top tables and an open space for dancing. It is a super-flexible space and defined by the event and not by the space.”

If things go as planned, by the end of the month, the arts district will be rocking to a new eclectic beat as the Capri reopens its doors.