The amphitheatre was built in 1965 to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the founding of St. Augustine, originally with 2,000 seats. land was originally part of
Anastasia State Park. The
Pulitzer Prize winning
playwright Paul Green was commissioned to write a play to be performed at the amphitheatre. The result was
Cross and Sword: A Symphonic Drama of the Spanish Settlement of Florida, a musical reenactment of the first years of St. Augustine's existence.
Cross and Sword was designated the official state play in 1973 by the Florida Legislature. The play ran until 1996, when budget constraints ended its more than 30-year run. The amphitheatre was used infrequently during the following years, though it did host a free summer
Shakespeare Festival from 1997 to 2003. In 2002, St. Johns County acquired the property and the following year began an $8.7 million renovation. In 2018, the amphitheatre's 300 level seating was expanded by adding 700 seats, bringing the venue's capacity to 4,700. In 2019, the theater branded itself as "The Amp". Also in 2019, the Amp is ranked #2 amphitheatre in the United States and #3 worldwide according to leading concert-industry publication Pollstar Magazine's 2019 Mid-Year report. ==Farmers market==