Leeds Theatre turns 100

Leeds Center for the Arts celebrates a century of stories with open house and season sneak peek

On Tuesday, July 8, Leeds Center for the Arts will cel­e­brate the 100^th anniver­sary of the the­ater at 37 North Main Street in Winchester with an open house, free and open to the public.

“We’re so excit­ed about this sig­nif­i­cant mile­stone,” said Leeds Executive Director Tracey Miller. “So many peo­ple have invest­ed in our suc­cess over the years, and this is a mar­velous way to acknowl­edge the won­der­ful the­ater they helped build and con­tin­ue to build with their endur­ing support.”

The event will be marked with an open house that includes a procla­ma­tion by Mayor JoEllen Reed, a spe­cial mes­sage from the office of Governor Andy Beshear, remarks from Secretary of the Kentucky Tourism, Arts, and Heritage Cabinet, and per­for­mances from the upcom­ing Leeds 100^th anniver­sary “Season at the Movies.” Included: songs and scenes from Beetlejuice JR., It’s a Wonderful Life, 9 to 5: the Musical, and Shrek: the Musical. The open house begins at 5:30pm with light refresh­ments and tours of the the­ater, with the pro­gram of greet­ings and per­for­mances begin­ning at 6pm.

“Of course, we’re thrilled to have made it this far,” said Director of Marketing and Outreach Ellie Miller. “100 years is an amaz­ing record of ser­vice to our com­mu­ni­ty. But even more excit­ing is what the next 100 years hold. Theater is all about tra­di­tion, yes, but also inno­va­tion. We have so many won­der­ful young artists and future lead­ers emerg­ing through our edu­ca­tion pro­grams and so many oppor­tu­ni­ties for our most under­served youth to excel and shine.” Some of those oppor­tu­ni­ties include the Leeds Youth Advisory Board, the two bands of its Rock University pro­gram (or “Rock U”) and its sis­ter pro­gram, launch­ing this fall: “Bluegrass U.”

“We hope we get a great show­ing from our com­mu­ni­ty for this open house,” con­tin­ued Tracey Miller. We want so bad­ly to thank our friends and neigh­bors, and to show Winchester what a trea­sure is sit­ting in the mid­dle of its beau­ti­ful down­town. Not only are we putting on great shows and offer­ing great learn­ing expe­ri­ences, we’ve been doing it for a cen­tu­ry. That’s worth celebrating!”

EVENT DETAILS

Day and Date: Tuesday, July 8, 2025
Location: Leeds Center for the Arts, 37 North Main Street, Winchester, KY 40391
Open House, with Light Refreshments: Begins at 5:30 PM
Program with Remarks and Performances: 6 PM
Admission: Free and open to the pub­lic
Suggested attire: Snappy casual

History of Leeds Center for the Arts

Built as a sin­gle-screen movie house in 1925, Leeds received its name through a con­test; the win­ner rearranged the name of the theater’s founder, S. D. Lee. For 61 years, Leeds endured as a cin­e­ma, clos­ing in 1986 and reopen­ing in 1990 as a per­form­ing arts venue. It has been a major dri­ver of arts, cul­ture, and eco­nom­ic health for the region ever since. In 2025, Leeds was rec­og­nized by the Blue Grass Trust with its Community Preservation Award for out­stand­ing stew­ard­ship and inno­v­a­tive use of an impor­tant his­toric property.

Leeds offers four plays and musi­cals each year, as well as a num­ber of addi­tion­al events includ­ing con­certs, com­e­dy, and com­mu­ni­ty per­for­mances. Its SPARK Education Program pro­vides year-round edu­ca­tion oppor­tu­ni­ties, includ­ing spring and fall class­es and show­cas­es, its Youth Advisory Board, and its two incu­ba­tors for musi­cal tal­ent: Rock University and the upcom­ing Bluegrass University. This fall, Leeds will begin an audi­tion-based pro­fes­sion­al devel­op­ment work­shop for advanced mid­dle and high school stu­dents called Leeds Artists Collective.