Brogan: Not the Last Picture Show!!

CONCORD, NH — For nearly half a century, The Concord Theatre at 18 ½ South Main Street, has been an important part of my life. I started working there as a teen and remained an intricate part of the theater for the last 27 years of its storied existence.

From the first picture show in the fall of 1933 (“The Sweetheart of Sigma Chi”) to the last picture show in the late summer of 1994 (“Andre”), virtually everyone in Concord and the surrounding areas, walked through the doors and purchased a ticket. Even actor David Niven and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis paid a visit over the years. On the theater’s screen you had the opportunity to see everything from classic, Oscar-winning epics to “Animal House”, “Rocky” and “The Crying Game”. The Concord Theatre was a community meeting place and during the run of a hit film (“Valley of the Dolls” sold over 15,000 tickets during its historic run), the theater served to draw 800 – 900 people into Concord’s downtown area on any given night.

Theresa Cantin, who owned the theater, knew the names of most of her regulars and took the time to personalize her greetings when they purchased their ticket. It was not unusual for a customer to tell her that their father or grandfather had once frequented the theater. While the Concord Theatre may have lacked some of the gleaming modern touches of a multiplex, it more than made up for that with the sense of family that was evident throughout.

Since it closed in 1994, I have been passionate in keeping alive the memory and history of the Concord Theatre. Whether writing for Patch or the Monitor, I was amazed at the enthusiastic response I received. More recently I have lectured on the history of the theater. In January of this year, I taught a class for the OLLI (Osher Lifelong Learning Institute) Program at Concord’s Granite State College. Classroom 107 was bursting at the seams with interested individuals, some of whom shared their own personal memories of going to the Concord Theatre.

While I dreamed of seeing the theater open again, after nearly 23 years of closure, I had begun to believe it might not ever happen. Fortunately I may be proven wrong.

It’s just been announced that a teaming up of the Capitol Center for the Arts and Developer Steve Duprey, may once again light the Concord Theatre’s marquee.

The Capitol Center has been searching for a way to provide an additional venue for performances that don’t necessarily need the nearly 1300 seats in the performing arts center. Steve Duprey, in the meantime, has been trying to purchase the theater for a number of years, without success.

I know some people have passionate feelings both pro and con about Mr. Duprey. However, one thing is certain – he passionately cares about Concord and we as a city are very fortunate to have someone who feels that way about our community and doesn’t just talk the talk. He steps up when he sees an opportunity to do something and in this case it appears he may be able to revitalize a very important part of our city’s past.

Steve is pursuing an important historical tax credit that would make it feasible to keep the existing brick shell of the building and not tear it down. The original building which housed the Norris Bakery dates back to the mid-1800’s.

The costly project will also need a major fundraising effort, the type of effort that our residents have always gotten on board, whether with saving the Capitol Center for the Arts, making Red River Theaters a reality or restoring the City Auditorium.

When completed the Concord Theatre project would be able to seat up to 400. As a movie theater it seated 499 but the seats were 1933 vintage and small and often uncomfortable. In its new incarnation, it could pay host to small scale live theater, screenings of ballet and opera, as well as a small concert venue to name but a few of the opportunities that would then be available.

Personally, this opportunity is something that excites me. The Concord Theatre has been a part of more than ¾ of my life. To see it potentially come alive again would be the icing on the cake of my life. I watched as people came and went at the theater for many years and I saw what it meant to them.

In a recent e-mail to me, Steve Duprey noted: “It will be a wonderful old/new venue to have back in Concord” – and indeed it will be.