I’ve been attending the classics series and special events at The Lafayette for the past year, since first visiting the theatre for their 3-D festival. The most awesome event I witnessed must have been the screening of Steam Boat Bill, Jr. with a 32-piece orchestra in the pit. Truly extraordinary, and the first time I can think of a spontaneous and genuine unanimous standing ovation after a movie!
The love and respect for these films, and the theatre, from both the owners-and-staff and the audience adds to the wonderful experience every week.
I worked in The Warner for a number of years in the late 80s and early 90s. The stage and screen frame were still intact behind the current screens. Fortunately, plans to add 2 more screens, which would have structurally destroyed the stage, never went ahead. This may be in part to the economic and political turmoil Cineplex was suffering at the time.
The mural needs restoration as years of popcorn oil, cigarette smoke (no longer allowed) and rain leakage has taken a toll. Some of the door frames are mohoganny, hidden beneath layers of paint. We talked of re-exposing them, but some sections had been replaced with cheaper wood. We did expose the black marble baseboard that also spent years covered in a terracotta paint.
There is an underground stream beneath the theatre that formed the coolant of the original air-conditioning. The catwalks still exist above the upstairs ceiling, which lead you to the current air conditioning units.
The upstairs theatres were modified from the original balcony. The Warner was originally planned to become a twin, but during renovation the idea of placing a wall down the middle sealed its fate as a quad.
The original chandalier still hung in the lobby, while I was there, though its glass pieces had been replaced with translucent plastic.
I’ve been attending the classics series and special events at The Lafayette for the past year, since first visiting the theatre for their 3-D festival. The most awesome event I witnessed must have been the screening of Steam Boat Bill, Jr. with a 32-piece orchestra in the pit. Truly extraordinary, and the first time I can think of a spontaneous and genuine unanimous standing ovation after a movie!
The love and respect for these films, and the theatre, from both the owners-and-staff and the audience adds to the wonderful experience every week.
I worked in The Warner for a number of years in the late 80s and early 90s. The stage and screen frame were still intact behind the current screens. Fortunately, plans to add 2 more screens, which would have structurally destroyed the stage, never went ahead. This may be in part to the economic and political turmoil Cineplex was suffering at the time.
The mural needs restoration as years of popcorn oil, cigarette smoke (no longer allowed) and rain leakage has taken a toll. Some of the door frames are mohoganny, hidden beneath layers of paint. We talked of re-exposing them, but some sections had been replaced with cheaper wood. We did expose the black marble baseboard that also spent years covered in a terracotta paint.
There is an underground stream beneath the theatre that formed the coolant of the original air-conditioning. The catwalks still exist above the upstairs ceiling, which lead you to the current air conditioning units.
The upstairs theatres were modified from the original balcony. The Warner was originally planned to become a twin, but during renovation the idea of placing a wall down the middle sealed its fate as a quad.
The original chandalier still hung in the lobby, while I was there, though its glass pieces had been replaced with translucent plastic.