Warren Theatre

The Warren Theatre was included in the MGM Theatre Photograph and Report project. There is an exterior photo dated May 1941. The theatre was located on the east side of Warren Street a short distance south of the Dudley elevated railway terminal. It was at an intersection of a side street; its entrance was at the corner and the left side of the building ran along the side street. The theatre was one story high, and above the corner entrance was a big half-round dome. In the photo there appears to be an elevated stage house to the rear, but that may merely be the adjoining building back there. The Report states that the Warren had been a MGM customer for over 10 years; that it's over 15 years old and in Fair condition, and has 1,328 seats, all on one floor. It was,like many of the Roxbury movie theatres, a part of M&P Theatres. In the spring of 1968, while riding the bus between the Fields Corner and the Dudley MBTA stations, I saw the Warren Theatre. It appeared to be in good shape on the outside and perhaps only recently closed.

According to Google Street View, this theater is still standing and is/was being used as a church. The side-street which runs along its left side is Waverly St.

An old interior photo of the Warren Theatre was printed in the souvenir booklet for the 1983 Theatre Historical Society convention in Boston. The photo appears to have been made when the Warren was new and was taken from the rear of the orchestra floor looking towards the stage. It had a flat ceiling with a row of fancy small chandeliers above each side. The rectangular proscenium was dressed with drapes and curtain. On each side of the stage, above an exit door, was a fancy organ grill. On each side of each grill there is some sort of fancy wall hanging or banner. A portion of the left side wall can be seen and it appears to have a large window, but this might be a faux window with curtains and back-lighting. It was a very attractive auditorium.

I have seen 2 more old photos of the Warren. One was taken from the front of the house looking toward the rear. There was no balcony. There was a 3-port projection booth up on the rear wall. The side walls were decorated with cloth banners or tapestries. There appear to be faux windows along the side walls above each emergency exit door. There appear to be at least 30 rows of seats with 4 aisles. There is also an exterior view. The marquee was supported by posts on its outer corners. It says "Talking Singing Shows". The attraction is the film version of the hit play of the late-1920s, "Abie's Irish Rose". There is a verticle sign about 40 or 50 feet to the right of the marquee. The entrance and marquee are on the corner of the building. There are numerous poster frames around and near the entrance.