ESTEVAN — After being closed for more than nine months due to flooding, Estevan's 111-year-old Orpheum Theatre is set to reopen.
Jocelyn Dougherty, who owns the Orpheum with her husband Alan, said the Orpheum will reopen on May 30 with "quite a variety for everybody". Up first will be a children's movie, Peppa Meets the Baby at 4:45 p.m. It will also be shown May 31 and June 1 at 10:30 a.m. All tickets will be $5.
Featured attractions for the first week back will be A Minecraft Movie, which will split time with Sinners in one theatre. Lilo and Stitch will be shown in the other theatre.
"We realize a couple of the movies have been out for a little while, but obviously we weren't able to play them, so we feel there still might be … people that want to see them yet," Jocelyn Dougherty said in an interview with SaskToday.
Then on June 6, the Orpheum wants to bring in Mission Impossible – The Final Reckoning, as Dougherty said people have clamouring to see it.
The Doughertys were hoping to have the theatre open in time for the Victoria Day long weekend or the U.S. Memorial Day long weekend, which is traditionally the start of the summer blockbuster season.
The staff has been hired, and Dougherty said there is a lots of training that remains. Just one person has worked in the theatre's concession previously, and Dougherty said he's a great worker, but he's also in Grade 12 and will move on when he graduates.
They still need to have a technician from Cinematronics to come in and inspect the projector and sound system, since they've been unused for the past nine months.
"We just have to make sure there aren't going to be any issues before we fire everything back up. That was a hold-up to get that all booked," she said.
The final stages of the building's restoration also had to be completed. Projects in the basement needed to be finished and final approvals were needed with insurance companies.
"We can finally see the finish line and we're going to reopen," said Dougherty.
The hot-buttered popcorn machine is ready to be used. The Orpheum has been training the new staff how to prepare the popcorn, and Dougherty hopes patrons will be excited to try it again.
The Orpheum is partnering with KoN Artisan Ice Cream for a special Orpheum Theatre popcorn ice cream, which will be available at both the theatre and the ice cream shop.
"He is going to use Orpheum Theatre popcorn to make this special blend … so I think that is new and exciting."
Also new will be online ticket sales, so people can purchase their tickets in advance for movies and concerts.
Dougherty is hopeful that their absence means people will be more eager to go to the movies. The Orpheum has faced plenty of adversity in recent years, with the closure and seating restrictions associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. This latest closure occurred after the building flooded during the water main replacement in the 1200-block of Fourth Street last summer, associated with the downtown revitalization project.
"Hopefully … people will want to come back and enjoy the big screen experience," she said.
