Alger Theater

The Alger Theater is a 20th-century cinema in the Morningside neighborhood at 16451 East Warren Avenue, featuring a striking two-story square tower on its facade. The building contains a large auditorium with roughly 825 seats and retains its original brick exterior and decorative metal wall sconces.

The cinema opened in 1935 with modern sound technology and air conditioning, making it a luxury destination for neighborhood entertainment. It remained popular for about forty years before the role of such theaters shifted in the city.

The theater once served as a gathering place where neighborhood residents spent their evenings together. Its presence shaped how people experienced entertainment and community in this part of the city.

The building sits at the corner of Warren Avenue and Outer Drive, making it easy to locate in the neighborhood. Access may be limited, so check ahead about visiting hours and current availability before planning a visit.

It is one of just two completely unchanged neighborhood theaters still standing in Detroit and appears on the National Register of Historic Places. Its preservation without alterations makes it a rare example of cinema architecture from that era.