To spot the Craterian Theater, look for a soft tan building with green roof accents, big glass windows, and a flashy theater marquee stretching over the sidewalk, right beside a tree-lined plaza.
Alright, welcome to the Craterian Theater! You’re standing in front of a true Medford legend-one that’s seen everything from glamorous Hollywood stars to toe-tapping local chorales. Picture this: back in 1923, the main theater in town, the Page, burned to the ground. It left Medford gasping for entertainment like someone who’d lost their popcorn at the movies! So local visionaries rushed to fill the void, and just a year later, architect Frank Chamberlain Clark whipped up this gem-giving Medford a grand stage once again.
The name? That took some local creativity-and a contest! For a whopping $25 prize, Mrs. W.P. Brooks named it after the iconic Crater Lake, dubbing it Hunt’s Craterian Theater. Imagine the excitement in 1925: velvet seats, golden lights, and echoes of laughter as people crowded in for shows. Even the great Ginger Rogers graced this stage in 1926, back before she tap-danced her way into Hollywood history. Time rolled on, and the Craterian had its glamorous makeover in 1997-renamed for Ginger Rogers and later, the generous James Collier.
These days, whether it’s a touring Broadway show, a wild musical, or Medford’s teens taking a bow, there’s always something happening here. So take a deep breath and imagine the thunder of applause-this theater has been making Medford smile for nearly a century!
