ROCKLAND — The Strand Theatre announces a special concert with Beatles tribute band The Walrus on Friday, June 26, at 7:30 p.m. With a leading gift from this band, the theater is kicking off their fundraising campaign for a new sound system for the auditorium.  

Now in its 20th year, The Walrus is a band of Portland-based musicians who came together through a shared love of Beatles music. All members are active recording and touring artists who were recently featured in a Rolling Stone article highlighting Portland’s ambitious music scene. Members Spencer Albee, Andrew Hodgkins, Zach Jones, Anna Lombard, Sean Morin, and Jon Roods vie to recreate The Beatles recordings as accurately as possible in a live show setting, according to a Strand Theatre news release.

"The Walrus does celebrate the music of The Beatles with as much reverence and enthusiasm as possible, but do not dress up and impersonate The Beatles," said the news release. 

According to the Theatre, the Strand’s sound system was installed with the building’s restoration in 2005. Now 20 years old, it is time to upgrade to a more dynamic and immersive sound system that interfaces seamlessly with the new digital projector generously donated by the Cascade Foundation in 2024. The upgrade will include both the cinema and live sound systems, which share components. 

The historic Strand Theatre, located in downtown Rockland, has been entertaining audiences since 1923 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The theater became a nonprofit in 2014, and is now a multi-use venue offering current first-run and independent films, live musical concerts and comedy, Met Opera simulcasts, educational programs, conferences, and other special events on its stage and screen. 

Multiple ticket levels are available for The Walrus concert. Tickets and more information are available online at RocklandStrand.com, or by calling Hannah Sirois, development coordinator, at (207) 701-5053. 

The Strand Theatre is located at 345 Main Street, Rockland.