Historic movie palaces / Boston-Edison / Woodward
Alhambra Theatre
Closed – archive entry · 1914–1959
Kunsky's movie house on Woodward, facing the Boston-Edison mansions, showed films from 1914 to 1959, then became a recording studio where the MC5 cut High Time. It was demolished in 2007.
Quick facts
- Opened
- 1914
- Closed
- 1959
- Architect
- C. Howard Crane
- Style
- Arts and Crafts exterior; Neoclassical auditorium
- Seats
- 1475
02 / The story of this place
Make time for these
Kunsky's Alhambra opened on November 1, 1914, a C. Howard Crane design with a 1,475-seat Neoclassical auditorium, a Hillgreen-Lane organ and a small orchestra for the silent films. Its wealthy Boston-Edison neighbors across the street made Sunday its quietest day and pushed the manager to change films almost daily. Live acts played here too, Gypsy Rose Lee among them. The cinema closed in 1959, and in 1967 producer Artie Fields turned it into a recording studio, where the MC5 cut High Time in 1970 and, according to Historic Detroit, Gladys Knight's Midnight Train to Georgia was laid down. It later became a church, then sat abandoned until it was demolished in 2007.
- Hillgreen-Lane organ and a silent-film orchestra
- Gypsy Rose Lee played its stage
- The MC5 recorded High Time here in 1970
Plan your visit
The Alhambra was demolished in 2007, and only its site remains on Woodward Avenue. For that old movie-house feeling today, head to the working Detroit cinemas and theatres in our guide.
Cinemas nearby
Back to cinemas ↗
Multiplexes / Detroit
Bel Air Luxury Cinema
The only first-run multiplex inside Detroit's city limits: ten screens on East Eight Mile with luxury rockers, recliners and a giant custom chandelier. No need to drive out to the suburbs for the new releases.
IMAX & giant screens / Detroit
Michigan Science Center – Immersive Dome Theater
Midtown's science museum runs three screens: the giant Immersive Dome Theater, the Penske Planetarium and the 3D Toyota Engineering Theater. The museum calls the dome the largest theatre in Michigan.
Film festivals / Detroit
Detroit Black Film Festival
Independent films directed, written or produced by Black filmmakers, at a Detroit festival Lazar and Marshalle Favors started in 2020. The 7th edition in September 2026 screens 89 films from 30 countries, with the Charles H. Wright Museum as its hub.
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