The Conservatory has been in constant collaboration with the Boston Symphony Orchestra since its founding in 1881, the first of which was composed largely of Conservatory faculty members. The concert hall of the famous institution, Jordan Hall, was built in 1903, it seats more than 1000 spectators at a time. It is the most prestigious American concert venue. For example, cellist Yo-Yo Ma admitted that he loves this unique hall for its unusual, incredible acoustics, for the warm, uniquely trusting environment. The most vivid sensation is the feeling when you come here for the first time.

Today, the New England Conservatory of Music is home to about 750 students, and more than 1,000 students are enrolled in the School of Secondary Education and the Preparatory School. Musicians who are world-renowned have trained here, with the most popular being graduates of the avant-garde jazz department. Among them were Dave Douglas and Matthew Shipp, Cecil Taylor and Marty Ehrlich.

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Red River Theaters. Concord, New Hampshire

This award-winning nonprofit organization is just as likely to show silent classics as it is to showcase additional offerings for audiences seeking premiere feature films. But what really makes Red River Theaters special is the community support: seven years of real-life “hey kids, let’s put on a show” volunteer efforts led to this state-of-the-art, three-screen theater, which also hosts workshops, Q&As with actors and directors, sing-alongs, and original programming like the BYOB (Bring Your Own Baby) series.

Coolidge Corner Theater. Brookline, Massachusetts

Considered one of the best art-house theaters in the country, the Coolidge has earned a national reputation even while maintaining deep ties to the community. Originally built in 1906 as a church, it was redesigned as an Art Deco movie theater in 1933, and today it retains the classic feel of that era in its neon marquee and large 440-seat main theater (it also has a smaller theater and two screening rooms). Since 1989, the Coolidge has been run by a nonprofit foundation that has overseen the overhaul as well as offered endlessly innovative programming, such as a screening of the film The Grapes of Wrath, which was accompanied by a talk by environmentalist Bill McKibben on the science of climate change.

Railroad Square Cinema. Waterville, Maine.

Celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2018, the Railroad Square Cinema actually burned to the ground in 1994, but thanks to the dedication of its founders and the local community, it was rebuilt and reopened the following year. In 2012, it was acquired by the Maine Film Center, the nonprofit parent organization of the Maine International Film Festival, which has been based at the Railway Square since its launch in 1998. In its weekly schedule, the three-screen theater mixes first-run independent series and international films with world cinema classics, and serves what it calls “the best popcorn in the known universe.”

Latchis Theater. Brattleboro, Vermont.

The roots of this theater date back to 1938, when it opened as part of the Latchis Memorial House, dubbed a “city within a city” that also included a hotel (still in operation today), ballroom, restaurant, and gift shop. The building is now under the care of Latchis Arts, which has helped transform the theater into a bustling four-screen venue that hosts film premieres, live events, public talks, and special screenings. The crown jewel is the Main Theater, which boasts 750 seats, a full stage, and the largest movie screen in southern Vermont-not to mention plenty of vintage glamour with historic murals by Hungarian-American artist Louis Jambor and a ceiling mural depicting the zodiac signs.

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Architecture

The Palace Theater is located in downtown Waterbury, on the south side of East Main Street, just east of the town green. It occupies about 125 feet (38 m) of street frontage with a row of small ground-floor storefronts to the right of the theater entrance. The entrance is protected by a large canopy projecting over the sidewalk. The upper levels of the four-story building are divided into eight bays, with the center six having the most elaborate treatment. The second story has bands of three windows in each of these bays and is separated from the upper two stories by a cornice. The upper bays have two-story round-arched windows framed by round columns and separated from each other by Corinthian pilasters. A frieze band and cornice crown the building. The interior lobbies and auditoriums are richly decorated.

History

The theater was built in 1922 and designed by Thomas W. Lamb, one of the leading theater designers of the time. When it opened, it was recognized as the best performance venue in the city, hosting traveling vaudeville shows and the latest movies. It was part of the business empire of Sylvester Z. Poly, who controlled as many as thirty theaters, mostly in the northeastern United States. Only two of Poly’s theaters have survived in some form, and this one is exceptionally well preserved. The theater closed in 1987 and stood for eighteen years. The Tomasso Group undertook a $30 million restoration and reopened it in 2004.

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Chandler Music Hall was built on the site of one of two churches in Randolph and completed in 1907. For the next 25 years, it was an important community center that hosted plays, concerts, silent films, operas, and lectures. In 1927, the combination of the Great Depression and a devastating flood began a period of decline for the space. The launch of the Brigadoon in 1971 triggered a lengthy restoration, and today the music hall is once again a premier performance venue.

Warner Theater, Torrington, Connecticut

The Warner Theater was built by Warner Brothers Studios and opened as a grand Art Deco movie palace in 1931. Fifty years later, the theater was saved from foreclosure thanks to a fundraiser by the Northwest Connecticut Arts Association. It reopened as a performing arts center in 1983. Today, more than 160 performances take place in Warner each year, and educational programs help more than 8,000 Connecticut children engage with the arts.

Bangor Opera House, Bangor, Maine

The Bangor Opera House, now home to the Penebscot Theater Company, was originally a Romanesque-style building designed by architect Arthur H. Vinal. It burned down and was demolished in 1914, but was soon redesigned by architect Edward J. Bohlen in a combination of Art Deco and Art Nouveau styles. In 1966, the building became the Bangor Cinema, which showed movies and hosted performances by the Bangor Symphony Orchestra. The Penebscot Theater Company took over management in 1997 and has overseen major restorations while preserving the historic beauty of the space.

Criterion Theater, Bar Harbor, Maine

The Criterion Theater was founded by George McKay and opened in 1932. It is one of the two remaining Art Deco theaters in Maine, with an impressive and magnificent interior. After falling into disrepair for many years, the theater was saved by generous donations and almost completely restored to its original glory. Currently, The Criterion shows movies and hosts a variety of live performances.

The Palace Theater, Manchester, New Hampshire

Modeled after the New York theater of the same name, Manchester’s Palace Theatre was built by Greek immigrant Victor Charas and opened in 1915. The building was technically air-conditioned, with fans blowing huge blocks of ice under the stage. During the heyday of the theater, the Marx Brothers, Bob Hope, and Jimmy Durante performed here. Mostly a movie theater from the 1930s to the 1960s, the Palace was dark for a while until it was restored and reopened in 1974.

Palace Theater, Waterbury, Connecticut

Opened in 1922, the Palace Theater was designed by architect Thomas Lamb. Its Second Renaissance Revival style combines Roman, Greek and Arabic designs. The palace was originally a movie theater and vaudeville, but it also hosted big band performances, rock concerts, and more until it faded away in 1987. Since it reopened in 2005, the Palace has become an impressive performance complex, hosting Broadway tours and many other programs.

Music Hall, Portsmouth, NH

The Music Hall was built on the site of the Temple, one of Portsmouth’s historic meeting houses, in 1878 with a classic proscenium arch and elegant upper lobby. Although it has been the victim of several fires over the years, the Music Hall has brought vaudeville, opera, dance, and dramatic performances to Portsmouth. Buffalo Bill Cody performed here with his Wild West show, and the Pirates of Penzance graced the stage a few weeks after its premiere. After operating as a movie palace, the space was saved from demolition in 1987 and today functions as a non-profit arts center.

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Cape Playhouse, Dennis, Massachusetts

Former performers of the Cape Playhouse include Ginger Rogers, Bette Davis, and Humphrey Bogart, and Actors’ Equity has dubbed the space “America’s oldest professional summer theater.” Founder Raymond Moore wanted to build a venue that could serve the communities on Cape Cod, and stars who escaped the hot summers of New York City have graced the stage here since 1927. The nearby Cape Cinema, opened in 1930, has a church-style exterior with an Art Deco interior design. In 1939, the theater hosted the world premiere of a little-known movie called The Wizard of Oz.

Somerville Theater, Somerville, Massachusetts

Built in 1914 by Joseph Hobbs, the Somerville Theater in Davis Square is part of the larger Hobbs Building, which originally housed a bowling alley, billiard room, café, several storefronts, and the Hobbs Crystal Ballroom on the second floor. The theater was designed for opera performances, stage plays, vaudeville and early motion pictures. The Somerville Theatre Players began weekly performances in 1915. Former performers include Tallulah Bankhead and Ray Bolger. Busby Berkeley also directed here.

Newport Opera House, Newport, Rhode Island

The Newport Opera House, which is currently undergoing restoration, plans to reopen in the summer of 2018, the year of its 150th anniversary. The theater was designed by architect James Rudolph as a post-Civil War addition to the Newport stage. Initially, it hosted plays and other performances, and in the 1920s it was converted into a movie palace; it screened films until its closure in 2010. Among the former performers are Harriet Beecher Stowe, Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford and Duke Ellington.

Theater by the Sea, South Kingstown, Rhode Island

The Theatre by the Sea in South Kingstown began as a girls’ camp run by Alice Janes Tyler in a shingle-covered barn on the grounds of her summer home from 1928 to 1933. The Depression forced her to convert the barn into a 300-seat theater that went through several renovations and saw Golden Age performers including Mae West, Marlon Brando, Carol Channing, and Groucho Marx. After a slow decline, producer Tommy Brent saved the theater from demolition in a matter of hours. To this day, Broadway in the Barn can be seen in this historic theater.

Paramount Theater, Rutland, Vermont

The Paramount Theater in Rutland was built by George T. Chaffee and opened in 1914. The building, which was then known as the Playhouse Theater, had an interior inspired by Victorian opera houses, complete with velor curtains and gold leaf ceiling decorations. Former performers included Harry Houdini, Ethel Barrymore, and Sarah Bernhardt. After becoming a movie theater, the Playhouse was renamed the Paramount Theater in 1931.

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