I’m heading back to the Strand Theatre in Clinton, Massachusetts for another photography workshop on Saturday, September 19.
The Strand opened in 1924 as the Philbin Theater and spent most of its life showing movies. It closed in the late 1970s, then reopened in 1995 as a cinema draft house and stayed open until the end of 2021.
For a while, it looked like the building had finally found its next use. A new operator signed a four year lease last year with plans to turn the Strand into a performing arts and entertainment venue.
That did not work out.
The lease fell through, the Strand is back on the market, and for the moment the building is sitting empty again.
Which means I get another chance to bring a group of photographers inside.
The workshop is Saturday, September 19. We’ll have the day to photograph the auditorium, balcony, lobby, projection booth, stage area, and the other parts of the building we have access to.
I have photographed the Strand a number of times now, and it has changed surprisingly little. A lot of the 1995 cinema draft house conversion is still there, along with older details from the theater’s original life.
I have no idea what happens to the building next. Hopefully somebody takes it on and does something useful with it. Until then, this is another chance to photograph the Strand while it is still sitting in roughly the same condition.
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View of the auditorium from the orchestra level.
The Strand Theatre opened in downtown Clinton, Massachusetts, on Labor Day weekend in 1924, built to replace a section of High Street that had been destroyed by fire. Originally named the Philbin Theater, it hosted vaudeville acts, live performances, and silent films before transitioning to talkies in 1929. A naming contest soon after its opening led to the name that would stay with it for nearly a century. For decades, the Strand remained a key part of Clinton’s entertainment scene, offering a mix of live shows and films while competing with other theaters in town.
By the late 1970s, changing entertainment trends and declining attendance forced the Strand to close, leaving its doors shuttered for almost twenty years. In 1995, a full-scale renovation transformed the space into a cinema draft house, allowing audiences to watch second-run and classic films while enjoying food and drinks. Some seating was removed to accommodate small tables, but much of the historic charm remained intact. Open six nights a week, the Strand once again became a popular fixture in downtown Clinton, offering an alternative to larger, corporate-owned theaters. The MGM Theatre Report from 1941 documented its original layout of 1,112 seats—715 in the orchestra and 397 in the balcony—confirming its place as a major venue in the area.
View of the auditorium from the side of balcony.
The COVID-19 pandemic forced the Strand to close in March 2020, and although it reopened in May 2021, attendance never fully recovered. On December 31 of that year, it held its final film screening before closing once again, leaving a significant gap in Clinton’s downtown. Determined to revive the theater, town officials secured $100,000 in state American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds and set aside an additional $300,000 in local ARPA funding. However, in order for the funding to be used, a new owner must be willing to invest an equal amount. Another $70,000 from the Local Rapid Recovery Plan has been allocated to restore the Strand’s iconic marquee, which has long served as a visual anchor on High Street.
The effort to restore the Strand aligns with Clinton’s larger downtown revitalization project, which has included $4.5 million in infrastructure improvements such as new sidewalks, streetlights, and pedestrian-friendly spaces. Town officials believe the theater could play a key role in attracting visitors to the area, not just as a movie house, but as a multi-use entertainment venue. A retractable screen could allow for concerts, comedy shows, or theatrical performances, making the space more adaptable to modern audiences. A stage already exists behind the movie screen but remains inaccessible in its current configuration. The building is currently for sale.
Some of the original seats remain in the balcony.Not much remains in the projection booth.
