Fox Tucson Theatre Receives $5M for Expansion, New Events Center

The Fox Tucson Theatre has seen its doors closed and rebuilt and a pandemic over the past 100 years or so, but 2026 has been a fruitful year.

On June 4, the Fox Tucson Theatre Foundation announced a $5 million naming rights donation from Hughes Federal Credit Union for the Fox Tucson Theatre Foundation.

Fox Tucson Theatre Executive Director Bonnie Schock stressed the actual theater won’t be renamed; just a new performing arts center. The campus as a whole will contain the historic Fox Tucson Theatre and the new Hughes Center at the Fox, both of which will be referred to as Fox Tucson.

“This probably marks one of the most significant moments in my 35 years in the performing arts industry,” said Schock, who has worked at the Fox since 2020.

“We are taking a massive step toward something that will have a lasting impact on the arts scene in Tucson. It will carry forward the legacy of our beloved historical Fox Tucson Theatre.”

The new venue is expected to attract more than 150,000 guests each year and generate over $18 million in annual regional economic impact.

Elisa Ross, Hughes Federal Credit Union’s chief experience officer, said it’s a perfect partnership.

“At Hughes, we believe that a community’s health and economic vitality depend not only on financial services but also on education, the arts, and the kind of experiences young people have access to. The Fox has been making that happen in Tucson for nearly a century,” Ross said.

“And, so, this partnership is a natural extension of our priorities and our deep roots here. We are proud to have been Tucson’s hometown favorite for nearly 75 years, and we are proud to help secure the Fox’s future so it can keep the arts alive in our community.”

The center will offer performances, community events, corporate gatherings and education programs. Plans include a 350-capacity second-floor performance space, a grand lobby and bar, a catering kitchen, a rooftop terrace, additional restrooms and full ADA accessibility — something the Fox does not have.

That expansion is vital to Fox’s educational work. Its KITT (Kids in the Theatre) program already draws in more than 15,000 young people each year for school matinees, storytime, autism-friendly events, family shows, educator workshops and summer camps.

During that time, thousands of free tickets are issued to Title I schools, teachers and caregivers.

“They need access to education, the arts, and the kinds of experiences that open doors for young people,” Ross said.

“The Fox has been making that happen in Tucson for nearly a century.” Schock wholeheartedly supports programs such as KITT.

“We need to preserve the arts for our kids, for our grandkids,” she said. “If we neglect these spaces, they go away. We’ve seen it happen.”

The Fox Tucson Theatre debuted in 1930 as a vaudeville and movie house; the 1930 Jack Benny / Marie Dressler film “Chasing Rainbows” opened the venue.

The opulent Fox Tucson Theatre closed in 1974. However, through community advocacy, the “Crown Jewel of Downtown Tucson” reopened in 2005. This year, it will celebrate the 20th anniversary of its full restoration.

“I’m a steward, along with our board and our staff, of this space,” Schock said.

“We take all of the action to make sure that we leave it better, that we continue to weave it into the fabric of the community as the community is now. That’s why this project, in which we preserve the existing facility and integrate it with a new facility that can support it better, is so important.”

Tucson officials are expected to give architectural design approval in 2027 and groundbreaking will take place in 2028. Two years later, the center will be open on the Fox’s 100th anniversary.

“Historic theaters have a special place in my heart,” Schock said.

“They are repositories of memory and of a community’s love. As well as other spaces do, if they’re supported properly, they connect us in a way that other spaces don’t. And that is intentionally a monument to our shared, creative identity. It lands an experience slightly differently. It embeds those experiences in our memory and our hearts.”

Hughes has also set a challenge: gifts or pledges of $100,000 or more made before Dec. 31 will trigger the groundbreaking.

“Hughes’ generosity is not only an investment in a building but in our city’s cultural vibrancy, economic prosperity, equitable access, education, and the future of the performing arts in Southern Arizona,” she said.

_Originally reported by [Pollstar](https://news.pollstar.com/2026/06/17/venuesnow-fox-tucson-getting-5m-expansion-new-events-center/)._