Castle Square Theatre
421 Tremont Street,
Boston,
MA
02118
421 Tremont Street,
Boston,
MA
02118
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Undated photo of a building promoting Castle Square and other theatres added via Jai Sotomayor.
A photo of the interior: View link
The Castle Square was built in 1894, adding a rectangular stage on to the round cyclorama that had previously been used as a riding academy,
An 1896 book called The Planning and Construction of American Theatres attributes the design of the Castle Square Theatre to architect E. W. Maynard.
If you click on “Site Map” in the website that Edward Findlay has linked to there are a large number of photos of 19th Century theaters.
View link A shot of the theatre.
The building on the extreme left is still standing. The ARL’s property and drive way takes up most of the block, the Chandler may have part of an older building in it but I highly doubt it has anythign to do with the Castle Squarehttp://www.josephhaworth.com/castle_square_theatre.htm
I also remember reading a long time ago that the Diplomat Hotel contained some remnant of the old Castle Square Hotel, which was part of the Castle Square Theatre building, but I don’t know how true that is.
Somewhere I think I read that today’s Chandler Inn (once called the Diplomat hotel) is a remaining piece of the old Castle Square Hotel.
In the 1921 Boston business and street directory, it’s listed as “Arlington Square Theatre”.
In a 1918 Boston street directory, both the Castle Square Theatre and the Castle Square Hotel are listed at 421 Tremont St., between Chandler St. and Appleton St.
Yes, someone told me a long time ago that the Animal Rescue League facility sits on the approximate site of the Castle Square/Arlington Theatre.
It was located at the current corner of Tremont & Arlington/Herald Street, aprroximately where the Animal Rescue League is. It was across the street from where the currect Castle Square Apartments are located.
During Christmas week 1921, “Jack and the Beanstalk” was playing on stage as a holiday-week attraction for children. The theatre was called the Arlington at the time.
The Castle Square Theatre is listed in the 1897-98 edition of the Julius Cahn Official Theatrical Guide, an annual for roadshow managers. The seating: Orchestra: 750, First Balcony: 400, Second Balcony: 562. Total: 1,712 seats, plus box seats. There 600 standing room spaces. Ticket prices ranged from 25 cents to 75 cents. The proscenium opening was 40 feet wide X 42 feet high, and the stage was 54 feet deep. There were 24 members in the house orchestra. The theatre is not listed in the 1927 Film Daily Yearbook under either the Arlington name or the Castle Sq. name, which implies that for the year prior to the publication the theatre hosted only live fare, and no movies. In the book “Boston’s Bridges” by Yanni Tsipis (Arcadia Publ. 2004), there are 2 photos which show the right exterior wall of the Castle Sq. Theatre not long before demolition. The photos are on page 116 (bottom) and page 117 (top). ( These comments replace postings to this page which were recently deleted in error.)