Rio Theatre (Overland Park, Kansas)
Overland Theatre, Overland Theater, Kimo South, Park Cinema, Theatre for Young America | |
Rio Theater in September 2012 | |
| Address | 7204 W 80th Street Overland Park, Kansas United States |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 38°59′04″N 94°40′09″W / 38.9844°N 94.6693°W |
| Owner | Fine Arts Group |
| Capacity | 281 |
| Construction | |
| Opened | December 25, 1946[1] |
| Architect | Robert O. Boller |
| Website | |
| fineartsgroup | |
Overland Theater | |
| Architectural style | Moderne architecture |
| NRHP reference No. | 05000009[2] |
| Added to NRHP | February 9, 2005 |
The Rio Theatre is a historic single-screen movie theater in Overland Park, Kansas. It opened on December 25, 1946, to replace two earlier local cinemas that had closed during the Great Depression. Commissioned by the Dickinson Theatre Group and designed by Robert O. Boller of the Boller Brothers firm, the 600-seat single-screen venue marked the end of a ten-year absence of a movie theater in Overland Park. The theater's design and architecture is an example of the Moderne-style, incorporating the use of teal neon lights, peach porcelain tiles, glass blocks, and aluminum trim. The theater was purchased by the City of Overland Park in 1987 for historic preservation purposes. It was sold to the Fine Arts Theatre Group in 1993, which undertook extensive renovations to restore the building to its original appearance. The theater reopened in 2000 as the independent Rio Theatre.[3][1][2][4][5] The theater closed in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and underwent renovations, and as of July 2024, it has not yet reopened.[6][5][7][8]
On February 9, 2005, the theater was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.[9]
References
- ^ a b Lozano, Denise (June 29, 2000). "Her name is Rio". The Pitch. Retrieved November 8, 2022.
- ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
- ^ "Rio Theater". JocoHistory. Johnson County Library. June 2005. Retrieved July 6, 2025.
- ^ Keller, Mike (May 5, 2019). "A History of Dickinson Theatres: Reel One 1920 – 1969". JocoHistory. Johnson County Library. Retrieved November 8, 2022.
- ^ a b Shackelford-Nwanganga, Bek (August 31, 2022). "Rio Theatre in Overland Park remains closed - Will it reopen?". Shawnee Mission Post. Retrieved November 8, 2022.
- ^ Garcia, Juliana (June 29, 2020). "Rio Theatre marquee gets update during COVID-19 closure, owner says no permanent closure in sight". Shawnee Mission Post. Retrieved November 8, 2022.
- ^ McCarthy, Ben (June 20, 2023). "Rio Theatre owners still hope to reopen in downtown Overland Park". Shawnee Mission Post. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
- ^ Thompson, Jenna (July 26, 2024). "'The lights will shine again': Long-closed Johnson County movie theater may still reopen". Kansas City Star. Retrieved May 1, 2025.
- ^ "Rio Theater". Johnson County Museum. Retrieved November 10, 2022.