WAYNESBORO, VA (Wayne Theatre) — The Waynesboro Heritage Museum and the historic Wayne Theatre invite the community to explore 100 years of entertainment, community life, and cultural change when “On With The Show: A Century of the Wayne Theatre in Waynesboro, Va.” opens Saturday, October 10.

The exhibit will open to the public at 10 a.m., when the Waynesboro Heritage Museum begins its regular Saturday hours. Located at 420 W. Main St. in downtown Waynesboro, the museum is open from 10
a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Admission is free.

Developed by the Waynesboro Heritage Foundation in partnership with the Wayne Theatre, “On With The Show” will examine the theatre’s century-long history within the broader story of entertainment and community life in Waynesboro.

The Wayne Theatre first opened January 18, 1926, as a vaudeville and motion picture house. Its history reflects changing entertainment, technology, architecture, and community standards across the 20th century, as well as decades of civic investment that ultimately returned the theatre to the community as a restored performing arts center in 2016.

Planned exhibit content extends beyond the theatre building itself. Visitors will learn about entertainment in Waynesboro before the Wayne opened, the theatre’s construction and evolution, its changing uses through the decades, community fundraising and wartime activities, the effects of segregation, Black performance history, Virginia film censorship, and changing public attitudes toward movies and morality.

The exhibit will also explore the community effort to preserve and restore the Wayne and the theatre’s contemporary work in performance, arts education, and community engagement.

The Wayne Theatre experienced several major transformations during its first century. The theatre installed equipment for talking pictures in 1929, underwent a significant expansion in 1949, sustained extensive damage in a 1980 fire, and later operated as a twin cinema. It closed in 1999 before community advocates organized to preserve and restore the facility.

The historically restored Wayne Theatre reopened March 1, 2016, as a nonprofit performing arts center. Today, the organization presents touring artists, produces local and regional performances, offers films and special programs, and provides arts education through Studio Wayne.

“We are excited to open “On With The Show” as our new exhibit at the Waynesboro Heritage Museum. The exhibit, put together through the hard work of our dedicated staff, volunteers, and friends, shares the rich history of the Wayne Theatre for its 100th year,” Jeremy Hopkins, curator for the Waynesboro Heritage Museum, said. “We believe that preservation and sharing of our collective history is only possible with the community, so for this exhibit marking such an important milestone for an iconic local landmark, we heartily welcome the community into the museum. In the exhibit, you can learn more about the theater’s history and its role in Waynesboro and find out how Waynesborians have long been entertained and been the entertainers, from the late 1800s to the depression and World War II, through the darkest days of segregation and racialized entertainment, and through the ups-and-downs in theatergoing. We look forward to seeing you.”

The exhibit is expected to remain on display until June 5, 2027, allowing visitors to explore the Wayne’s history throughout its centennial year and beyond.

A formal exhibit reception and related programming are planned for Sunday, November 22. The exhibit will be open for viewing at the Waynesboro Heritage Museum from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m., followed by a silent movie to be shown at the Wayne Theatre from 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. The reception will then be held at The Russell beginning at 5:30 p.m.

As a tribute to how the Wayne Theatre accepted admission to its shows in 1946, the Waynesboro Heritage Museum asks those who attend the reception to bring a canned food item to benefit the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank.

For exhibit information and future updates, visit: NEW: On With The Show | Waynesboro Heritage Foundation.