History: Theater District

Modern Theater Interior and Floor Plan.jpg

Modern Theater Interior and floor plan, The American Architect. Vol. CVII, No. 2049, (Courtesy of Boston Public Library)

Boston’s theatrical history has its roots in Colonial days, when the British produced plays in Faneuil Hall to boost the spirits of the redcoats occupying the city. The first Boston theater building opened in 1792 and was followed by a succession of venues, many of them concentrated in the area of lower Washington and Tremont streets. Movie palaces, ornate purveyors of motion pictures, came onto the scene in the 20th century.

Signage at the Modern Theatre evolved over the years. In the era before neon and marquees, the name of the theater is spelled out in light bulbs, the ticket booth is visible, and printed signs advertise two movies released in 1926. The silent film, The Sea Beast, was based on Herman Melville’s Moby Dick and featured John Barrymore as Captain Ahab. Courtesy of John Toto

Movie tickets cost 15 cents in the Modern’s Theatre’s early days. Courtesy of John Toto

The Modern Theatre could accommodate an audience of 800 in its long, narrow auditorium and balcony. Courtesy of Sager Family Foundation Archives

Businessman George R. White purchased the Dobson-designed carpet warehouse in 1913, with the idea of turning it into a theater expressly designed for showing motion pictures, which were growing in popularity.

At this time, movies typically had been shown in nickelodeons: storefronts or lecture halls jerry-rigged to show “flickers.”

The commercial building was transformed into the first Boston theater designed specifically for the presentation of motion pictures. The Modern Theatre featured a classical white marble veneer superimposed over the original polychrome facade. The basement and first three floors of the former warehouse were converted into an 800-seat movie theater, decorated in Florentine Renaissance style. The rest of the five-story building was leased to businesses.

The Modern Theatre was paired with the Beacon, and the two movie houses showed the same films, as shown in this 1926 postcard. The reels were transported from one venue to the other by streetcar between showings. Courtesy of John Toto

Blueprint shows the design for a new Modern Theatre marquee, 1930. (Boston Public Library Blueprint Collection)

Design for a new Modern Theatre marquee, side view. Courtesy of Boston Public Library