The club formerly known as the Alhambra Theater first opened on Aug. 1, 1914 to bring Vaudevillian specialties and motion pictures to the people of El Paso. Henry C. Trost, the bearer of the building’s architectural byline, created the monstrosity for a whopping $150,000. It was cutting edge, done in a Spanish Moorish design that would be a signature element of movie palaces in the 1920s, and remains to this day one of the most beautiful buildings in downtown El Paso.

An El Paso landmark reborn, Blu, El Paso’s newest club and VIP lounge, breathes new life into one of the Southwest’s most historic night spots. After nearly 100 years, 209 S. El Paso St. remains a vibrant and thriving downtown installation.

The club formerly known as the Alhambra Theater first opened on Aug. 1, 1914 to bring Vaudevillian specialties and motion pictures to the people of El Paso. Henry C. Trost, the bearer of the building’s architectural byline, created the monstrosity for a whopping $150,000. It was cutting edge, done in a Spanish Moorish design that would be a signature element of movie palaces in the 1920s, and remains to this day one of the most beautiful buildings in downtown El Paso.

Six years after its opening, the Alhambra was completely renovated and renamed the Palace. The days of Vaudeville were gone, and the theater became solely a motion picture attraction. The Palace would enjoy a long run as one of the leading movie theaters in the Southwest.

But as the rest of the nation was experiencing the emergence of Suburbia, so too was El Paso. With the movement out of metropolitan areas came a downward turn in the popularity of urban movie houses. Then, to the continued dismay of movie house owners, came the invention of television. An evening out at the movies had been rather unceremoniously replaced by an evening in with the family. Desperate times called for desperate measures, and the owners of the Palace wanted to give their customers what they couldn’t get at home. The historic and once glamorous theater became a venue for pornography.

My how times had changed. But the reinvented theater was subsisting, thanks to the adult movie industry, and might have forever if it had not been for the El Paso Electric Company, which stepped in in 1984 in an effort to clean up downtown El Paso.

In the end, nothing much came of their valiant effort. The venue has changed hands over the years, with several million dollars invested over more than two decades to try and turn the once great theater into something spectacular again. These efforts have finally culminated with what is sure to be an El Paso institution. The glitz and glamour that once was is back. Blu has embraced the history of this landmark and is committed to restoring it to a level of sophistication and cool El Paso has always envisioned for one of its landmark buildings.
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