Capitol Theatre

A historic 1921 movie palace that has been beautifully restored to its original glory. The Mediterranean Revival-style building has served as a community gathering place for over a century.

The Capitol Theatre, Clearwater's most notable haunted location, opened March 21, 1921 showing silent films with Friday vaudeville performances. During 1981 renovations when it was rechristened the Royalty Theater, workers made a grim discovery: Bill Neville's murdered body in the balcony. Bill, a theatre manager, was killed by a homophobic person and is said to haunt the balcony where he died. Tales tell of his apparition saving a worker from a potentially fatal fall. The Captain, a ghostly gentleman with a distinguished goatee, prowls the passageways in his blue coat and fisherman's hat, notorious for making his presence known to women in touchy ways. Carrie, Bill's much younger girlfriend and theatre usher, also haunts the building—she claims she knew enough to stay quiet after Bill's murder. The TV show Psychic Kids visited in 2008, detecting severe injury and chest tightening in the balcony. R.I.P. HUNTERS paranormal team recorded significant activity including orbs captured on film, alarms going off unexpectedly, and a chandelier swinging for no reason. Manager Jeff Hartzog reports the feeling of hair standing on end. The Gothic-inspired theatre went into foreclosure in 2008 before being restored.