NEWS RELEASE: New owner plans to spend $1 million on landmark theater
Boston Globe Date: November 4, 2001


ARLINGTON - The new owner of the Regent Theater is planning to spend $1 million to bring the 85-year-old vaudeville landmark back to its former glory.

Gary Adelson, a Winchester real estate developer, is convinced the Medford Street auditorium can draw an audience from the surrounding communities for a mix of live theater, musical performances, and art films. He said he sold several other income properties to raise the cash to buy the 600-seat playhouse-turned-movie theater for $1.9 million in September. "I'm convinced it has huge potential because it is centrally located with plenty of free parking across the street," said Adelson, 47. "Arlington Center has become a dining destination in recent years with the opening of several small bistro restaurants. We think the Regent can complement that by providing an evening entertainment option."

Sharing his enthusiasm is Cambridge-based Jimmy Tingle, a stand-up political and social comic with a national reputation who is considering making the Regent his performance base. Last week Tingle signed a contract to hold his annual Christmas show there in December.

" Gary called me out of the blue a month ago and invited me to MC a fund-raiser for the September 11 Fund at this new theater he just bought," Tingle said, noting that the Oct. 3 event drew 250 people and raised $6,000. "I've been looking for another performance space, and this could be it."

Adelson said he also has the support of the local cultural community, noting that he has already negotiated a lease with the Arlington Children's Theater for its summer 2002 performance program.

" Whatever we do, we want to make sure we are providing a place for Arlington-based arts groups to present their offerings," he said.

Deborah Butler, a spokeswoman for the youth theater, said decent performance space has been lacking in Arlington.

" For us, this is great news because for the past few years we've been like bedouins, hauling our scenery and sets from church basement to church basement," said Butler about her program, which involves some 60 children a year in theater studies.

The theater's major tenant now is the Bombay Cinema, which offers first-run movies from India.

Adelson said he has already negotiated a deal with Bombay's owners, Anil and Arsh Mehrotra of North Andover, to keep the popular movie series at the Regent. He said the most likely scenario is that the Bombay Cinema will give up its Friday and Saturday night spots to other performances.

" Bombay has developed a very nice audience, and several Indian businesses have located in Arlington because of it, including two Indian restaurants," Adelson said. "But while the Indian movies are great for the Indian community, I think the Regent can be so much more."

Anil Mehrotra said he is confident he can work within Adelson's new vision, noting that Bombay Cinema already leases other movie houses around the region as audience demand warrants.

" We don't expect to lose the Regent, and we are very supportive of Gary's plans," Mehrotra said. "It really looks like we can work around what he wants to do."

The Regent Theater, which is actually a city block of storefronts and offices on Medford Street, opened in April of 1916. Heralded as Arlington's first, fully fireproofed building thanks to its concrete construction, the theater and its live performance stage rivaled any Boston venue at the time, according to a local newspaper account. A basement bowling alley and billiard room were part of the building's original entertainment mix.

When the silent movie craze hit in the 1920s, the Regent's owners installed a huge movie screen across the stage and brought in a piano player.

There have been attempts in recent years to revive live performances at the Regent, but Butler said previous owners haven't been willing to invest the money to make the renovations and repairs modern audiences demand.

" The current air conditioning system is so noisy you have to turn it off during performances in order to hear, which doesn't work very well in the summer," Butler said. "And the building's new furnace was set up on the stage behind the movie screen."

Adelson said he has already started work on the structural changes needed to make the theater comfortable for all comers.

" We're going to upgrade the heating and air conditioning, install a new sound system, new bathrooms and seating," he said.

Author(s): Caroline Louise Cole, GLOBE CORRESPONDENT Date: November 4, 2001 Page: 1 Section: Northwest Weekly

Caroline Louise Cole can be reached at cole@globe.com.