After a long shutdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Capitol Theatre North Battleford has announced it will be re-opening for movie showings starting this week.
On their Facebook page, the theatre announced they have booked some classic re-released movies that will be shown on Tuesdays and Fridays. A number of local sponsors have come forward to support the movie showings.
The plan is to show one movie at a time at the Capitol Annex, with showtimes on Friday nights, Tuesday matinees and Tuesday evenings. Admission will be by donation to a charity of the sponsor’s choosing.
Their first sponsored movie starting on Friday will be The Avengers, sponsored by Gold Eagle Gas Bar. Donations will be going to The Lighthouse Serving the Battlefords.
Ticket are not available on their website, but can be reserved Tuesdays and Fridays during their showtimes or by stopping in on Saturday during their Vendors Alley/Popcorn sales.
More details can be found on Magic Lantern’s website at www.rainbowcinemas.ca . Future movies listed on the website include Labyrinth on July 31 and Aug. 4, Inside Out on Aug. 7 and 11, and Bohemian Rhapsody on Aug. 14 and 18.
Several more sponsors have been announced for the movie nights and those confirmed include Armoury Brewing Company, Battlefords Pride, the Battlefords North Stars, Downtown North Battleford, Great Canadian Oil Change and the NB Part-time Fire Fighters Association.
Due to the province’s gathering restrictions, there will be reduced seating capacity and social distancing at the Capitol. According to their Facebook post, those out on a date can sit together, but there will be three empty seats between those individuals and the next group of patrons in the cinema.
Cleaning will go on before, during and after the movies, and anyone who is sick is asked to stay home.
The screenings will be the first at the Capitol since mid-March, when theatre chains across North America were closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
It is still not known when the Capitol’s five screens will be fully open again for new releases. Right now, cinemas across North America are struggling with a lack of new product from the Hollywood studios due to the surge in COVID-19 cases in the United States. Blockbusters planned for spring and summer release have been pushed back, in some cases multiple times.
The latest setback was announced Monday with reports that the Warner Bros. release Tenet, directed by Christopher Nolan, has been pushed back indefinitely from its planned Aug. 12 release date.
