Waterville Opera House
93 Main Street,
Waterville,
ME
4901
93 Main Street,
Waterville,
ME
4901
No one has favorited this theater yet
Showing 5 comments
The Theatre Historical Society archive has the MGM Theatre Report for the Opera House; it’s Card # 458. Address is “City building”. There is an exterior photo taken Feb. 10, 1941. Condition is Fair. The report says that it was remodeled in 1937 and was showing MGM films. The number of seats is hard to read but it looks like “1,131”.
Prior to the opening of the Opera House in Waterville, touring shows played at the City Hall auditorium, according to the 1897-98 edition of the Julius Cahn Official Theatrical Guide. It was located on the ground floor, had 700 seats and a stage 26 feet deep.
My sisters, my niece and I have been vacationing here for about 10 years. The Opera House is indeed stunning. We saw a marvelous ballet company there. There is now a new movieplex to replace the old one across the street on Kennedy which had deteriorated, and is now a church. The plex is great, but the Opera House is magic from another era.
That was the Haines Theater that was totally destroyed in a fire in 1966. The movie playing at that time was ‘Georgy Girl’. It was probably the best of the Waterville Theaters. There was also the State, which has been converted to a resturant. After the Haines burned they started showing films at the Opera House again until the new theaters, Cinema 1 & 2 opened on Kennedy Memorial Drive in 1968.
I remember going to the Opera House for some Disney double features during 1966 & 1967.
Which Waterville theatre is shown in this old postcard?