Broadway & big houses / Lafayette Boulevard / Downtown
Cass Theatre
Closed – archive entry · 1926–1975
A Shubert-era playhouse on Lafayette Boulevard, across from the Free Press Building, that opened with an operetta in 1926 and later helped bring Cinerama to Detroit. It was torn down in 1977–78 for a parking lot.
Quick facts
- Opened
- 1926
- Closed
- 1975
- Architect
- Herbert J. Krapp (theatre); Donaldson & Meier (Board of Commerce Building)
- Style
- Italian Renaissance
- Seats
- 1,500 (1,050 after the 1965 Cinerama remodel)
02 / The story of this place
Make time for these
The Cass was added onto the Board of Commerce Building at Lafayette and Washington Boulevard, right across from the Detroit Free Press Building. Free Press owner E.D. Stair and the Shubert brothers opened it on September 12, 1926, with Sigmund Romberg's operetta Princess Flavia, and it went on to host many touring stars of the stage. Herbert J. Krapp designed the 1,500-seat house, which dropped to 1,050 seats after a 1965 Cinerama remodel. It helped usher in Cinerama in Detroit, then slid into adult films, briefly reopened as the Pandora for occasional ethnic films and closed for good around 1975. Its DP-70 projectors went to the Redford Theatre, and the theatre and the Board of Commerce Building were demolished in 1977–78 for a surface parking lot that's still there.
- Opened in 1926 with a Romberg operetta
- Helped bring Cinerama to Detroit
- Its DP-70 projectors went to the Redford
Plan your visit
The Cass site is a parking lot on Lafayette Boulevard today. For live theatre and classic movies, see the working venues in our guide, including the Redford Theatre, which got the Cass projectors.
Theaters nearby
Back to theaters ↗
Opera & dance / Detroit
Detroit Dance Collective
A professional contemporary dance company since 1980, founded by four Wayne State dance grads. In its 47th season (2026–27) it dances fall, winter and spring concerts at the Marlene Boll Theatre downtown.
Campus stages / Detroit
Detroit Mercy Black Box Theatre (Detroit Mercy Theatre Company)
University of Detroit Mercy's award-winning company came home to the McNichols campus in 2025, with a brand-new black box in the renovated Student Union. Season 56 brings Eurydice, Born With Teeth and a StarKid musical.
Opera & dance / Detroit
General Motors Theater at the Charles H. Wright Museum (The Wright Performances)
The theater inside the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Midtown, home of The Wright Performances. The 2026–27 series brings PHILADANCO!, jessica Care moore, Meshell Ndegeocello and David Rousseve.