Classic Towns News

Main street movie theaters were an important fixture in traditional small towns and close-knit communities. Over time, though, many have disappeared. This is not the case in a number of Classic Towns. Ambler, Lansdowne and Wayne are home to theaters that continue to thrive as entertainment destinations and community focal points. Collingswood’s Theater offers a unique alternative and powerful testament to the benefits of adaptive re-use.

Originally constructed in 1926, the Collingswood Theater was meant to rival the large downtown theaters in Camden and Philadelphia. Realizing the challenges of sustaining a theater on ticket prices alone, the Lessy Family (its original owners) had the foresight to create a mixed-use building. To complement the theater, the building offered first floor commercial space on both sides of the main lobby and second floor apartments to generate revenue.

Built in the Mission/Spanish revival style, the theater boasted a large lobby, 35-foot ceilings, and elaborate plaster and tile decorations that were manufactured in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. After closing in 1958 and sitting vacant for nearly 10 years, Bob Giandomenico, a Philadelphia-based photographer purchased the property and converted it into his studio. It was a labor of love, but it lasted. Bob used the space as his studio until he retired in 2001.

Bob had company for his last decade in the theater. From the early 1990s until 2002, he shared the building with the Philadelphia Orchestra, which used the building’s auditorium as a recording studio. The Orchestra wasn’t alone in its appreciation for the auditorium’s acoustics. The space also hosted recording sessions for Yo-Yo Ma, the Juilliard String Quartet, the American Boy’s Choir, and Wynton Marsalis.

Today, the theater still stands tall along Collingswood’s Haddon Avenue. Its auditorium is used as an office by a local advertising agency, and all of its first floor retail spaces and second floor apartments are occupied.