Arts / Performing Arts

Historic Fort Worth Landmark to Get a $8.5 Million Facelift — Will Rogers Memorial Coliseum Remains a Beloved Treasure With Its Own Backstage Club

Art Moderne Brilliance and a Cultural District Creator

BY // 02.19.23

Fort Worth’s famous and historic Art Deco coliseum is going to receive an $8.5 million facelift. Major upgrades are in the works for the Will Rogers Memorial Center with the Fort Worth City Council approving a plan to allocate its American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Revenue Recovery funds to renovate the landmark’s concourse and restrooms, grand lobby entrance and its Backstage Club.

Will Rogers Memorial Center was originally a Works Progress Administration project that ultimately became the centerpiece of Fort Worth’s entire Cultural District. Museums, equestrian facilities and multi-purpose developments have grown up all around it. Not to mention Dickies Arena.

Fort Worth businessman Amon G. Carter commissioned the facility for the 1936 Frontier Celebration during the Texas Centennial, but the Coliseum ended up arriving a year too late to join that party. Only the first al fresco rendition of Casa Manana got to take its star turn. While the original coliseum and auditorium were dedicated in 1936, the complex of some seven buildings in all, designed by the firms of Wyatt C. Hedrick and Elmer G. Withers, was not completed until 1937.

“The Will Rogers Coliseum is beloved by millions of visitors who have created memories here for 86 years,” City of Fort Worth director of pubic events Mike Crum says. “We are investing in the facility to ensure its historic charm and elegance continue to impress millions more in future generations.”

To say the building has made an impression on millions of Fort Worth natives and visitors over the decades is an understatement. Until fairly recently, the world’s oldest indoor rodeo — the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo — called it home. Will Rogers Memorial Center is hallowed ground for many.

This Cowtown showplace still hosts plenty of ranchers and breeders today. More than 30 equestrian events are held annually inside the Coliseum.

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“The Coliseum grand lobby and concourse create an important first impression,” Will Rogers Memorial Center general manager Kevin Kemp says. “When visitors arrive, we want them to experience the grandeur of the structure that Amon G. Carter envisioned and built years ago.”

Will Rogers Coliseum was dedicated in 1936. Its Art Deco architecture is cherished by generations of Fort Worth locals. (Photo by Courtney Dabney)
Will Rogers Coliseum was dedicated in 1936. Its art moderne architecture is cherished by generations of Fort Worth locals. (Photo by Courtney Dabney)

The oval concourse surrounding the arena was last fully renovated in the 1970s. It appropriately occupies a spot on the National Register of Historic Places. Upgrades planned for the 27,608 square-foot space include new flooring, ceiling tiles, energy-efficient lighting, water-saving restroom fixtures, wayfinding signage and decorative upgrades that complement the original art moderne architecture.

Inside Will Rogers Center’s Special Backstage Club

Will Rogers Memorial Center’s Backstage Club has hosted politicians, movie stars and other celebrities throughout its history. Its second floor perch overlooks the arena. This 5,203 square-foot space will be reconfigured to serve a broader spectrum of event needs while respecting the historical significance of the Fort Worth landmark.

Will Rogers should hold sway in Fort Worth for many more generations to come after this multi-million-dollar makeover.

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