In the 1920s, the building quickly became a popular entertainment venue with major performers such as Will Rogers (in 1927) and the Ziegfeld Follies (1928) appearing there.

The world premiere of Cecil B. DeMille's The Greatest Show on Earth (which had been filmed in Sarasota) was shown there in late 1951, attended by its stars Charlton Heston and Dorothy Lamour.

The structure required major renovations to restore the facility and to accommodate the demands of opera production, so the Association began work in 1982, resulting in the new Sarasota Opera House appearing on the National Register of Historic Places in March 1984.

[7] The $20 million renovation included gutting the auditorium, which resulted in a newly configured seating plan; expansion of the public areas and Opera Club on the second level; re-opening the 3-story atrium, which was covered with a newly-installed skylight.

The atrium and skylight was original to the building in 1926, but was covered by a ceiling and a chandelier used in the film, Gone with the Wind.