Waldo Theatre

The Waldo Theatre is a movie theater in Waldoboro featuring Art Deco design with classical elements including Tuscan columns, brick walls, and a gabled roof. The space holds roughly 400 seats split between the main floor and a balcony, with hearing-assistance equipment available for visitors.

Benjamin Schlanger, a New York architect, designed this building in 1936 as a modern entertainment venue with advanced features like improved air circulation. The theater was constructed with innovative elements meant to enhance viewer comfort at the time.

This venue shapes community life in Waldoboro by hosting film screenings, performances, and local events that bring residents together. The theater functions as a gathering place where neighbors experience art and entertainment alongside one another.

The room features a sloped floor with angled seating that gives every visitor a clear view toward the screen. This layout means that where you sit matters less because sightlines are designed for everyone to see well.

The ergonomic design of the seating was groundbreaking in the 1930s and showed that Schlanger thought carefully about how people experience watching. The seat arrangement was not arbitrary but the result of thinking about what makes viewing comfortable.