Located in Calgary's Stephen Avenue Mall, it operated as a nightclub from 1998 to 2004 and has been used as a sports bar and special event centre since 2007.

[1] The theatre was built by the Allen family who, at the time, operated the largest cinema chain in Canada.

[2][5] The theatre's early programs varied heavily in terms of content and included both films and live entertainment.

Calgary's Heritage Advisory Board spent several years studying the matter, but political priorities shifted amid the early 1980s recession and the endeavour was abandoned.

In September 1994, Dancers' Studio West announced a plan to raise $7 million to purchase the building from Capital Life Insurance of Colorado and convert it into a performing arts centre.

[11] The company's plans included removing the theatre's balcony to accommodate two stories of retail space, which the province's heritage officials rejected and the proposal ultimately fell through.

[12][13] During the $4.1 million renovation, a wallet belonging to one of the theatre's patrons that had been lost 42 earlier was found and returned to the owner's family.

[8] The building was designed in the Neoclassical style and features a symmetrical façade with evenly spaced fluted pilasters capped with Corinthian capitals, an oversized cornice, and classical detailing in the window surrounds.