History
On September 26, 1914, the Gem Theatre opened with Love, Luck, and Gasoline. Built by local residents Charles, Warren, and Lester Nichols, the picture house had a seating capacity of 500. Admission was a nickel or a dime for seats on the floor and ten or fifteen cents for balcony seats. The Gem Theatre operated until it was destroyed by fire in 1945. That year, Warren Nichols built the Community Theatre, and the hometown movie tradition continues in his building to this day. In 1977, when a stage was added, not surprisingly, many artists from the Folkway also performed at the Peterborough Community Theatre, including Odetta, Tom Rush, Jonathan Edwards, and Merle and Doc Watson. In 1984, the building was reconfigured into a 95-seat theater with an appropriately named restaurant next door: Hollywood Cafe.
Specialties
Newly released movies using state-of-the-art digital video and sound.