Elsinore Theatre, Historic cinema and performance venue in Salem, United States
Elsinore Theatre is a movie theater and performance venue in Salem, Oregon, housed in a Tudor Gothic building with seating for around 1,290 people across two floors. The exterior features carved stonework, and the interior holds stained glass windows made by the Povey Brothers studio.
The theater was designed by Ellis F. Lawrence, the first dean of the University of Oregon's architecture school, and opened in 1926 as a silent film house. Fox West Coast Theatres later took over and converted it to sound film, changing how Salem residents experienced movies.
The Elsinore Theatre takes its name from the Danish castle of Helsingør, the setting of Shakespeare's Hamlet, which gives the building a literary identity visible in its Gothic details. Inside, audiences gather for film screenings and live performances in a room that feels closer to a castle hall than a typical movie house.
The theater runs films and events year-round, so checking the schedule ahead of time is a good idea since the program changes regularly. It sits in downtown Salem and is within walking distance of the main public transit stops.
The theater once housed a Mighty Wurlitzer organ that played live during film screenings until 1962, filling the hall with sound long before modern cinema audio became common. This organ was a draw in itself and is still part of the stories that come up when people talk about the building's past.
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