Photo: Madison Rogers (WBZ)
WALTHAM, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — A historic Waltham cinema that shuttered last year is getting a new lease on life as a rhythmic gymnastics school and performing arts center.
Embassy Cinema at 16 Pine St. first opened in 1928 and was a staple of the community until it closed its doors on Sept. 5, 2022. The cinema had been financially struggling due to poor ticket sales in the wake of the the COVID-19 pandemic.
Now the former movie theater will be reopened thanks to new owner Smaranda Albeck, the executive director of Boston Rhythmic.
"We're cleaning carpets, we’re painting the walls, and we’re putting our own photography on the walls," Albeck told WBZ NewsRadio Thursday.
Purchasing the Embassy is the next big step for Albeck's school, which opened in 2002 and grew to become New England's largest rhythmic gymnastics program with around 800 students.
"Two days ago, after we did the signing, I got emotional, like I’m getting now," Albeck said. "Because this is big, it’s a big dream come true."
Albeck plans to keep two of the cinema's screens open to showing movies, while renovating the others. In addition to rhythmic gymnastics, Albeck also wants to bring in everything from martial arts to aerobics classes.
"We can invite experts from around the world to be in the classroom and huge on the screen," Albeck said.
WBZ's Madison Rogers (@MadisonWBZ) reports.
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