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Openings
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November 9, 2009
Iconic Chapel Hill Landmark Theatre To Reopen
CHAPEL HILL, NC — After closing this past summer, the Varsity Theatre, a historic landmark in Downtown Chapel Hill on East Franklin Street for more than 80 years is scheduled to reopen on November 9, 2009 under new management. The theatre, which in the past showcased foreign and independent films will present mainstream films as well as classic films at reduced prices.
Today, new owners will announce their plans for renovation, which include an upgraded lobby and concession area and a children’s birthday party room.
The owners declined requests for an interview until their announcement.
Former owner Bruce Stone, who operated the Varsity for nine years, said lowering prices didn’t work for him, and he doesn’t know how $3 movie tickets will work to sustain the new Varsity.
Read more of this article in the Daily Tarheel.
UPDATE: Now slated for November 29th reopening.
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November 5, 2009
Former Stadium 12 in Bonita Springs to re-open as cafe cinema
BONITA SPRINGS, FL — The Regal Stadium 12, which closed in June, will re-open in as the Prado Cinema Cafe. The twelve screens will remain; new amenities will include leather seats, a grill menu, beer and wine availability, and wait service. The Prado’s other tenants hope the theater’s re-opening will increase traffic at the distressed shopping plaza.
Four months after Regal Stadium 12 shuttered its doors in Bonita Springs, a new movie theater has announced plans for a return to the big screen in full Hollywood style, with more bells and more whistles.
Cinema Cafe is expected to open in February in The Prado at Spring Creek on U.S. 41, featuring 12 screens, leather seats, beer and wine service, a grill menu and waiter service.
“The Prado Cinema Cafe will bring a long overdue, upgraded cinema experience with value-added services to the Lee County area, but at affordable, everyday prices,” said Doug Olson, sales and leasing specialist for LandQwest Commercial, who secured the deal.
More detail in the Naples News.
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November 3, 2009
Two auditoriums of former Crown Center 6 reopen as twin cinema
KANSAS CITY, MO — When the former Crown Center 6 closed two years ago, the space occupied by four of its former screening rooms was converted into a live theater venue. The remaining two screens will be re-opening soon as the Screenland Crown Center. The cinema will operate from Thursday through Sunday most of the time and feature independent, foreign, and documentary films.
That programming should distinguish it from the more commercial fare shown at AMC’s Mainstreet in the nearby Power & Light District.
“Our intent was to find an operator who would fit more into our entertainment strategy, something outside first-run, big-studio pictures,” said Rick Brown of Crown Center Redevelopment.
More details at the Kansas City Star.
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October 30, 2009
Cinema 8 to open in Canby
CANBY, OR — This town, about twenty miles south of Portland, is looking forward to the opening of the Cinemagic Cinema 8. The town’s former Canby Theater closed decades ago. The theater is a major component of a downtown revitalization project in Canby. The owner of the Cinemagic Theaters, Chuck Nakvasil, also operates theaters in the greater Portland area and not long ago opened a 7-screen cinema in Scappoose, to the north of the City of Roses.
Canby Cinema 8, the city of Canby and Canby Urban Renewal Agency will celebrate the opening of Canby’s new theater on Friday, Oct. 30 at 5:30 p.m. with a public dedication of the Northeast Second Avenue and public parking lot project followed by a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the cinema.
The public-private partnership project has been in the works for three-and-a-half years as a revitalization project for Canby’s historic downtown. The Canby Urban Renewal Agency has invested $1.9 million in a new streetscape and a 150-space public parking lot that will serve the downtown area.
Read more about the Canby opening in the Canby Herald.
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October 28, 2009
14 Screen Regal multiplex opens in downtown L.A.
LOS ANGELES, CA — It’s been many years since a new theater opened in downtown Los Angeles, but the the Regal Stadium 14 opens this week on W. Olympic Boulevard as part of AEG’s L.A. Live complex. All screening rooms feature digital projection and four are 3D capable. Seating capacities in the auditoriums range from 140 to 800; the largest has a balcony and a 75 x 38 ft. screen and can be operated separately from the other screens using a separate entrance which is intended to appeal to studios as place to launch the opening of high profile films.
The premiere house, located on the ground floor, was designed specifically to accommodate film debuts, AEG officials said. It features stadium seating, a balcony and a 75-by-38-foot screen. It is accessible from a separate lobby adjacent to the main entrance and has a concession stand separate from the rest of the complex. It can be completely sectioned off for events while other auditoriums operate normally, said Roth during a recent tour of the facility.
Russ Nunley, vice president of marketing and communications for the Regal Entertainment Group, said that the one-stop-shopping quality of L.A. Live could also make it ideal for premieres.
“The location lends itself to that celebrity spotlight, with the neighboring clubs and amenities,” he said. “It really is a unique location that can host all of the activities related to a red-carpet event.”
More information and pictures at LA Downtown News.
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October 23, 2009
Kentucky and DC each lose a multiplex
According to their respective chains' websites, both the Phoenix Theaters' Union Station 9 and the Nova Cinemas' Theatres of Georgetown at the Factory Stores of America center in Georgetown, KY have both closed. The Union Station 9 was opened in 1988 by AMC as part of the rejuvenation project at the station and was spun of to the Phoenix circuit after the AMC/Loew’s merger. The closing had appeared imminent over the last several months.
The 7-screen Theatres of Georgetown only operated for a few years and is apparently a victim of the recession, according to this brief item at Kentucky.com.
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October 22, 2009
New multiplexes open in Hope Mills, NC and Secaucus, NJ
Citizens of Hope Mills, NC near Fayettville, recently hailed the opening of the new Millstone 14 cinema, the latest unit in the Charlotte-based Stone Theaters circuit. The town had not had a theater in many years. In Secaucus, NJ, Chicago-based Kerasotes has opened its first location on the East Coast, the Showplace 14.
Read more in the Fayette Observer and at nj.com.
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October 20, 2009
Hoboken, NJ greets new theater
HOBOKEN, NJ — Hoboken has been without a movie theater for five years, so the red carpet is out for the opening of Clearview’s new five-screen Hoboken Cinemas which opens on October 23. Built on two levels, three of the auditoriums will have stadium seating.
Clearview Cinemas, a subsidiary of Cablevision Systems Corporation, today announced that its new, five-screen movie theatre in Hoboken, New Jersey, will be open to the public starting on Friday, October 23. This state-of-the-art theatre, which is located on 14th Street between Adams and Grand Streets, will showcase the best in Hollywood, art and independent films as a premiere entertainment venue for members of the local community.
“If ever there was a community that would welcome a new state-of-the-art theatre, it’s Hoboken. This is a wonderful city with a rich history of embracing the arts and we are thrilled to be able to expand the city’s cultural scene by building a much needed movie house for Hoboken and its surrounding communities,” said Tom Rutledge, chief operating officer, Cablevision Systems Corporation.
More details in the Hudson Reporter.
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October 19, 2009
Cobb Theaters to open CineBistro in Tampa
TAMPA, FL — The former 7-screen Sunrise Cinemas at Old Hyde Park has been been completed gutted and will be re-opening as the the latest in the Cobb Theaters' group of CineBistro multiplexes. Previously the theater was operated by AMC and Madstone. It will operate six screens, as one auditorium space will now be occupied by the kitchen for the upscale food offerings.
Cobb Theatres gutted an existing 28,000-square-foot movie house on Swann Avenue which, during its operation under three chains through the years, was a drawing card for the open-air shopping area now in the midst of redevelopment.
Jeremy P. Welman, chief operating officer of Birmingham, Ala.-based Cobb Theatres, said the upscale concept will provide an intimate experience and is an ideal fit for Hyde Park.
Read more at Tampa Bay Online.
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October 14, 2009
Cinemark opens new multiplex in Robinson
ROBINSON, PA — A new 16-screen theater has been opened in this community, about 13 miles west of Pittsburgh. One of the auditoriums features Cinemark’s XD giant screen format, capable of digital 3D projection. The opening will most probably impact the thirty-year-old Showcase Cinema West in the same area.
The theater has a dozen different prices, from discount Tuesdays ($5.25 all day) to early-bird specials ($5 for the first matinee seven days a week) to regular adult admission ($6 before 6 p.m., $8.25 most evenings, $8.75 Friday and Saturday nights).
All are posted at the box office and at www.cinemark.com, which also allows online ticketing, with pickup at a station in the lobby.
“We’re trying to provide something for everyone, especially during these difficult economic times,” James Meredith, Cinemark’s vice president of marketing and communications, said before an informal tour.
Additional details are in the Post-Gazette.