National Register Listing

Aztec Theater

a.k.a. Aztec Theater and Office Building

104 N. St. Mary's St., San Antonio, TX

The Aztec Theater is a 6-story masonry, 2-part vertical block commercial building with applied Mayan Revival detailing. A flat roof caps exterior walls of brown scored brick with cast stone ornamentation. The theater's interior is noteworthy for its opulent references to Mesoamerican design influences.

The 1926 Aztec Theater Is a 6-story masonry, 2-part vertical block commercial building with applied Mayan Revival detailing. A flat roof caps exterior walls of brown scored brick with cast stone ornamentation. The theater's interior is noteworthy for its opulent references to Mesoamerican design influences. On a corner lot in San Antonio's central business district, the theater and office building faces west onto North St. Mary's Street. It retains a high level of its historic integrity, with few alterations.

In south central Texas, Bexar County is in the interior belt of the coastal plains. Although the northwest portion of the county is hilly with numerous spring fed streams, the City of San Antonio is quite flat, built along the San Antonio River plain. The city (1990 population 989,591) serves as county seat and as the region's economic hub, based on government, military bases, tourism, and other service and industrial businesses. Other commercial buildings surround all but the north side of the theater, which faces the San Antonio River walk, an area filled with lush foliage.

The building is almost rectangular in plan. Following a 2-part vertical block form, the lower zone of the building at street level incorporates retail space, while the upper zone houses more secluded office space. The street level of the Aztec Theater's main (west) facade is faced with polished pink granite that replaced the original patterned brick and tile decoration in the late 1960s . A central, recessed double door accesses the main ticket booth vestibule; a series of modern plate glass display windows on either side of the entrance was installed in the 1960s. Recessed doors on each end allow access to retail shops. Visually separating the street level from the upper stories, a metal awning extends across this facade and around to the south elevation. The marquee suffered several modifications. Originally it featured glass panels in a stepped configuration over the entrances (on both the west and south sides). Above the marquee, all windows are paired 1/1 wood frame, although some have been enclosed. A cast stone, denticulated string course separates the 2nd and 3rd floors. Three cast stone vertical strips between wider bands of brick establish a strong vertical rhythm of the upper stories. This ornamentation functions visually as large pilasters embracing the fenestration, spanning the height of these upper stories and unifying them. Capitals to these pilasters, with cast stone foliation and Mesoamerican ceremonial heads bedecked with feathered headdresses, rest in the wide cornice. Atop the cornice is a shallow projecting parapet with cast stone cresting colored red to imitate ceramic tile. A flag pole rises from the roof at the center of this facade. A vertical sign projects from the building's southwest corner, announcing the theater's name. The bottom portion of the sign, now a circular disk bearing the numeral "3," was originally a square panel displaying film-related information.

Wider, but with similar detailing, the south facade faces Commerce Street. The street level houses five retail shops within recessed doors set between modern plate glass display windows. The westernmost entrances provide admission to the grand foyer; the easternmost doors provide access to retail shops; the central entrances provide access to the office building lobby and the auditorium. The awning continues on this facade, as does the vertical rhythm of the upper stories and the adornment to both cornice and parapet. A flag pole rises from the roof at the center of this facade. Behind the flagpole is a small pavilion corresponding to these interior elevator shaft and annotated on original plans as a "penthouse."

The east elevation abuts another building and bears fire escapes and 1/1 windows. It also has two service doors.

The west bay of the north facade has detailing similar to that of the main elevation. However, the unadorned remainder of the north side faces an alley. Three fire escapes, and doors and windows that correspond to interior dressing rooms and the auditorium mark this elevation. These doors functioned as service entrances.

The interior of the theater ia its principal noteworthy feature. Mesocimerican influenced details lavishly decorate all public areas. The main entrance from North St. Mary's Street leads to the ticket booth vestibule. The floors in this vestibule feature brilliantly colored mosaic and terrazzo tiles laid in a geometric pattern based on frets and other stepped motifs (see Photograph 4). Built to resemble a truncated stepped pyramid, the ticket booth is the focal point of thia room (see Photograph 5). Green, black, and yellow cercunic tile in a geometric pattern functions aa the base board of the ticket booth. Above these tiles, white plaster walls simulate massive rough cut blocks of stone. Originally identical to ticket windows (see Figure 2; 7-8) on the north and south sides of the west ticket window was enlarged in the 1970s. The original ornamentation remains intact on the north and south ticket booth windows. Horizontal plaster panels above each window display gold figures sculpted in low relief against a blue background. These panels emulate a frieze on the north side of the Maya Temple of the Cross at the ruins of Palenque in south Mexico. Flanking the windows, vertical plaster panels painted green feature applied red and gold plaster Maya glyphs. Black wrought iron bars, resembling arrows, decorate both windows. The east side of the ticket booth has a single door.

itself, the same base board surmounted by grayish, turquoise-flecked plaster walls resembling massive rough cut stones. At the tops of the walls and encircling the room is a "snake and talon" molding, representing the winged serpent of Aztec mythology.

An enclosure extends across the north wall of the ticket booth vestibule and hides a storage room. Present access to this room is from the grand foyer; original features inside the room are still intact. The date of this addition is unknown; it is not on the original plans, but was constructed prior to 1967. The enclosure consists of a wall supporting a red tile shed roof. Base board and plaster walls on this addition match the other three sides of the room. The east end of this enclosure covers one of the three original double doors that led to the grand foyer. Between the three original doors leading to the grand foyer are has reliefs of Mesoamerican figures set in large vertical plaster panels.

The auditorium stretches eastward beyond the grand foyer. Five sections of seats face the stage, some with their original red velveteen upholstery, others recovered in shiny red vinyl; at the front of the auditorium is a small orchestra pit. Aisles that were originally carpeted now lay bare, the jade concrete floor exposed. Under the seats circular metal ventilation grilles originally dispersed water-cooled air. The walls of the auditorium, like those throughout the theater, simulate massive, rough cut plaster blocks. Rising to ceiling level, these massive blocks create the illusion of an open courtyard in a Mesoamerican temple complex. Stretching above the "courtyard" walls, climbing over the organ grilles, and resting on the Maya influenced sacred serpent Quetzalcoatl panel are bands of stepped plaster blocks with carved symbols that interpret the 20 days of the Aztec calendar. In former years an atmospheric ceiling intensified the feeling of being in an outdoor courtyard under a starry sky. Originally 100 twinkling and stationary lights studded the ceiling; four cloud machines sent wafts of wispy clouds drifting overhead; and electrical switches changed the ceiling-sky from nighttime to sunrise, to midday, to sunset, and back to night again. Although not recently used, the mechanisms to activate these atmospheric devices still survive in situ. In the auditorium, as throughout the entire theater, hardware fixtures are shaped in stepped configurations.

The focal point of the auditorium the original asbestos fire curtain stretches across the 31 x 101 foot stage at the east end. Its vivid color, undiminished by time, depicts the 1519 meeting of conquistador Hernando Cortez and Aztec ruler Montezuma on 1519 at the outskirts of the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan. Above the stage proscenium, a huge rectangular panel carved in low relief replicates the tableros on the sides of the Temple of the Plumed Serpent at Xochicalco with the sacred serpent Quetzalcoatl undulating across the proscenium arch. Centered within this immense panel, an enormous gold leaf sunburst rises 20 feet. Still functioning, this sun disc traditionally glowed gold at the end of each theater presentation. Enormous organ grilles, decorated with writhing serpents positioned between symbols representing sand and water, are on either side of the stage. A gigantic head of Coyolauhqui sits upon each huge column that flanks each grille; atop each head sits an enormous disc, patterned after the Aztec Sun Stone. Behind the curtain, the stage has a central "trap door" and an elevator shaft (with access to the alley service door) at its southeast corner. Stairs from the south side of the stage terminate in an exit onto the east alley.

Additional Mesoamerican symbols, patterns, and motifs embellishes the balcony. Mesoamerican patterns are painted on the ceiling under the balcony from which sunburst-shaped light fixtures. Painted glyphs decorate the front of the curved balcony ledge. The balcony itself was curtained off from the main auditorium in the 1960s and split in half to form two separate theaters.

Centered at the north edge of the auditorium is an exit onto Crockett Street; a passageway leads east to another exit and three former dressing rooms, each with its own double door exit. Centered at the south edge of the auditorium is an exit that leads to the office building lobby and two elevators and one stairwell to the upper levels all to offices. The lobby exits onto Commerce Street.

The mezzanine level acta as an intermediate story that forms a balcony and promenade to the grand foyer that offers access to dressing rooms (along the east side of the north wall), theater offices and rest rooms (along the west wall), commercial office space (along the east half of the south wall), and the balcony of the theater (see Maps-19). Originally the mezzanine was carpeted, but now red and white vinyl tiles cover the floor in a checked pattern. A plaster block wall with stepped frets and cast stone coping rises to waist level and serves as railing. Plaster walls around the mezzanine also simulate large blocks of stone.

Numerous and varied decorative features adorn the mezzanine. On the north side is a large, built-in, cement finished settee and a drinking fountain. The base of the water fountain, duplicates columns that support an altar table at the Toltec Temple of the Warriors at Chichen Itza in the Yucatan. On the east side the ceiling slopes upward in a stepped configuration. Painted on diagonal beams and on other portions of the slanted ceiling, a multitude of Maya glyphs, and stepped frets that mimic those decorating the temples of the Mixtecs at Mitla. Also on this east side are four benches with lavishly carved, curvilinear sides. Beneath each curved arm rest, the sculptured head of a tattooed priest protrudes out of the mouth of a serpent, a motif at the Pyramid of the Musicians at Uxmal in the Yucatan. A deeply recessed niche behind each bench holds three massive, gold columns each with a polychromatic decorative capital. Beside each bench is a gigantic vase embellished with colorful Mesoamerican figures and designs.

On the south side of the mezzanine, hidden from the grand foyer by the south staircase, the promenade served as a lounge. This space was labeled "museum" on the original plans. Three niches in its walls once held massive carved chairs; however, these were sold during the 1960s and the San Antonio owner is currently offering them for sale [same person owns the aforementioned sacrificial altar]. Positioned against the far wall of the west side, seven sculptures with red lights shining through their eyes perch atop tall plaster block bases eyes. These figures resemble miniature headdressed Mesoamericans adapted from Zapotec funerary urns found in the ruins of Monte Alban in south Mexico. Also on the west side a large ornate bench is centered in front of three relief panels. The center panel imitates the Panel of the Tapir, found at the Maya ruins at Copoyade in Chiapas, while the Panels of the Priests from Palenque inspired the flanking reliefs. An emergency passage runs along the south wall of the auditorium with an exit to a fire escape at the east end; it can only be accessed through the mezzanine.

At the southeast corner of the mezzanine is a single door that provides access to the 2nd floor commercial offices. These offices can also be accessed by the elevators and stairs centered on the south side of the building. The fenestration pattern in these corridors follows a window-door-door-window pattern, with transoms over each window. Each door leads to a small anteroom, behind which is a small office. Offices on the remaining upper stories run along the south and east sides of the building.

Less embellished, but important to the building, the basement housed a restaurant, several storage rooms, a boiler room, and theater offices.

Local significance of the building:
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1992.