State Theatre
609 Congress Street,
Portland,
ME
4101
609 Congress Street,
Portland,
ME
4101
4 people
favorited this theater
The State Theatre opened on 8th November 1929 and was designed in a semi-Atmospheric/Spanish style. The original seating capacity was for 2,300. It operated as a first run movie house until the late-1960’s, when it became a porn theater.
In 1989, the theatre was closed and fell into disrepair. By the mid-1990’s, the theatre was saved and restored. It closed for a brief time after its restoration and was reopened by new owners as a performing arts and concerts venue.
Closed again in early-2007, it was the last of the movie palaces left in the city of Portland, Maine.
The State Theatre re-opened in October 2010 as a concert and live performance venue.
Contributed by
Michael Mitchell
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Recent comments (view all 18 comments)
State Theater is currently owed by Stone Coast Properties, www.stonecoastproperties.com They own the entire Congress Building and have been making improvements and upgrades to the building since they bought it. They are currently looking for the right tenant for the State Theater, and if you are interested, you should call them. The State is a great place to see a show!
This is a modern (undated) photo of the State Theater.
just watched the guster concert film ‘guster on ice’, which was filmed at this theatre in 2004.
sad to see that it is closed.
The State Theatre, photographed in the snow in January 2008;
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1979 photo of the State Theatre. I believe this should be listed as two screens.
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1976 Night Photo
Chuck 1231 when the state theatre started showing porn movies they
made a 2nd screen in the balcony.Thats why in the pic it says state 1 and state 2.When they restored the state theatre that screen was removed during that time.Its a One screen theatre like it was before it was a porn theater.You should find out the facts before you make your comments.
Being a little critical aren’t we? I was only going by what was obvious in the photo. No where in the comments section does it say that the second screen was removed. Thus my comment about two screens.
The state has reopened! According to their new website they have undergone extensive renovations and they have a variety of events coming up. Movies are included among their events – Dec. 3 has a special showing of the Wizard of Oz.
I was there the other day on a bike trip. It was my last nite in town and I really wanted some interiors. The staff was nice enough to let me roam the place, even though a huge band was about to take the stage, and unaccompanied, no less. I got about 15 minutes of pix everywhere, including orchestra and both balconies. Upstairs is NOT ornate in the balconies at all. Love looking at atmospheric. No crazy ceilings or chandeliers. I’ll post pix sometime soon.