Town Hall Theatre Update March 1, 2021
RE-OPENINGING THE TOWN HALL THEATRE
With Plumas County’s recent entry into the Red Tier we are getting ready to re-open the Town Hall Theatre hopefully in April. From now until then we are sorting through what we will need to do to be ready while monitoring any changes to our county’s tier ranking.
A representative from Plumas County Public Health has toured the facility with us to offer guidelines and advice about protocols that we would have to employ to reopen safely within state and local guidelines. And we know a few things:
• Face coverings will need to be worn by all persons in lines and inside the theatre any time a person is not actively involved in consuming concessions.
• Spacing will be required in lines for ticket purchase and theatre entry and seating within the auditorium. Family groups or pods will need to be seated in the auditorium, then as space allows one (or two) persons from each group will be called to the concession stand to purchase for their entire group.
• In the Red Tier, we will be limited to a capacity of 25% for any given screening. While this might not be a problem in some cases, we will be required to turn people away when that capacity is reached. We want to avoid that, so to make sure that you and your group will be able to get into the movie you want to see on the day you want to see we will be offering presale ticket purchase online on the www.plumasarts.org website.
• We will also strongly encourage people to arrive at the theatre 30 minutes before scheduled screening times. With the new procedures we will have to abide by, planning to arrive at the theatre early will be far more important, not only to make sure that you get in to see the movie when you want to, it will also help to keep us on schedule as we work to move patrons through the lines to get seated and concessions so we can begin.
We are also planning a few innovations when we get back. We will be…
• Accepting credit card sales at the ticket booth and concessions stand.
• Hosting our own hometown version of pre-movies on-screen advertising 30 minutes before show times, in addition to movie previews. On-screen ads will provide an opportunity for businesses, agencies and even individuals to reach a captive audience while showing your support for your Town Hall Theatre.
**If you are interested in our on-screen advertising email [email protected] and we will get you details and work with you on getting you on screen as soon as we sort out the particulars.
As far as our regular programming goes, we are uncertain as to what movies are going to be available to us. As we are well aware, many major film releases are bypassing theatrical releases until the big city theaters are able to open again. We will also be dealing with the competition of films opening in streaming channels and video-on-demand and we do not know that is going to affect attendance.
As you may well imagine we are on a very steep re-learning curve. Things will be different than they were before we had to close our doors, but please know that we are on the road to getting our doors open again.
To keep in the know of our progress we will use our website (plumasarts.org), email updates (sign up here… https://www.plumasarts.org/contact-us.html ), Town Hall Theatre (https://www.facebook.com/Town-Hall-Theatre-1178275582443290 ) and Plumas Arts (https://www.facebook.com/PlumasArtsCalifornia ) Facebook pages as well as using the theatre marquee and poster kiosks.
Town Hall Theatre Update December 18, 2020
Well folks… Right after our projector was repaired we met with our county public health to review what it would take to safely open the theatre. Even in the Red Tier with a 25% capacity we were planning to give it a try, but then with spiking local cases, our placement in the Purple Tier and new Stay-at-Home orders, it looks like we will have to wait a bit longer. We imagine that will be at least a few more months.
While so many theaters around the country have been forced to close, we see that the film distributors are now releasing new films in Video on Demand to make ends meet on their end. There are doomsday predictions that this will bring the demise of movie theatre-going, but we do not see it that way.
We are heartened and very grateful to our devoted supporters who have been able to make donations to help us get our projector repaired and pay the utilities and expenses still need to be paid even while we are closed, and we know that our Town Hall Theatre is more than just a movie business. Rest assured that we will be back bringing you all together as soon as we safely can.
Programming may look a bit different. We hope for more live performances and a film schedule that includes special interest, documentaries, independent films and we are working on getting connected with London’s National Theater Live to screen some of their extraordinary world-class productions as well as a variety of live presentations. We are brainstorming ideas, investigating opportunities and keeping informed about the changing plans of the feature film industry.
We are looking forward to a time when we can get movies back up on screen, performers back on the stage and welcome you back through our doors. Until then please accept our wishes for a warm and peaceful time at home during this most unusual holiday Season.
Town Hall Theatre Update, October 2020
We want you all to know that we are on the road to getting the Town Hall Theatre reopened. At this point it is an uncertain, long and winding road, but we have a destination of a Winter (fingers crossed) opening goal. That is of course if Plumas County can remain “in the Yellow.”
We got over our first hurdle last week by getting the projector operational once again. Much gratitude goes out to the generous donors* who helped us to get back on screen by funding the $10,000+ repair. That will allow us to be able start anew without such a formidable cash hole to fill. And for that we are most grateful. See the list.
Now that Plumas County is in the Yellow Tier of the Governor’s reopening blueprint we can operate at 50% capacity. That can make it possible to meet expenses of operation, but we have other considerations...
To open we need to abide by COVID safety protocol by wearing masks, social distancing, sanitizing protocols, and ways to effectively monitor attendance so we do not have to turn people away at the door. We will be meeting with public health advisors to help us go over what all that will involve, so we can assess staffing needs and scheduling.
While closed we have been able to assess some ways to make the movie business better and sustainable. We are on our way to accepting credit card sales and navigating the mechanics of on-screen pre-movie advertisements and programming supported by business, organizations, and agency sponsors. We have also taken on some much needed de-cluttering of years of accumulation and a few facility improvements.
At this point the greatest obstacle is that there are not very many new movies for us to choose from. Theaters across the country have been shut down since the pandemic hit, particularly those in the major city markets that the film companies rely on for their big money openings. As a result movie release dates have been postponed and postponed again as film companies negotiate how they can make ends. So many of the potential blockbuster film releases, which have not already been postponed have been moved to streaming channels or video-on-demand limiting our choices even further.
Some theatres that re-opened closed again. Now we hear that some of the major theatre chains (Cinemark, Regal and soon AMC) are temporarily closing until there are enough new films to make things workable again. We want to make sure that once we do open our Town Hall Theatre, we will have enough weekly programming to stay open.
Our staff, board members and friends of Plumas Arts are hearing from so many people that they are looking forward to getting back into our theatre. We want it to be a safe place. As a small rural independent theatre with a devoted following we may stand a good chance of coming back and making it work. We are investigating resources to get a varied schedule of new, vintage, special interest and maybe even a few limited-audience live shows to keep your interest and fill the seats that we are allowed to have occupied. And as for that what we have to say is… Stay tuned for coming attractions!
* Thanks for Getting us Back on Screen!!
RE-OPENINGING THE TOWN HALL THEATRE
With Plumas County’s recent entry into the Red Tier we are getting ready to re-open the Town Hall Theatre hopefully in April. From now until then we are sorting through what we will need to do to be ready while monitoring any changes to our county’s tier ranking.
A representative from Plumas County Public Health has toured the facility with us to offer guidelines and advice about protocols that we would have to employ to reopen safely within state and local guidelines. And we know a few things:
• Face coverings will need to be worn by all persons in lines and inside the theatre any time a person is not actively involved in consuming concessions.
• Spacing will be required in lines for ticket purchase and theatre entry and seating within the auditorium. Family groups or pods will need to be seated in the auditorium, then as space allows one (or two) persons from each group will be called to the concession stand to purchase for their entire group.
• In the Red Tier, we will be limited to a capacity of 25% for any given screening. While this might not be a problem in some cases, we will be required to turn people away when that capacity is reached. We want to avoid that, so to make sure that you and your group will be able to get into the movie you want to see on the day you want to see we will be offering presale ticket purchase online on the www.plumasarts.org website.
• We will also strongly encourage people to arrive at the theatre 30 minutes before scheduled screening times. With the new procedures we will have to abide by, planning to arrive at the theatre early will be far more important, not only to make sure that you get in to see the movie when you want to, it will also help to keep us on schedule as we work to move patrons through the lines to get seated and concessions so we can begin.
We are also planning a few innovations when we get back. We will be…
• Accepting credit card sales at the ticket booth and concessions stand.
• Hosting our own hometown version of pre-movies on-screen advertising 30 minutes before show times, in addition to movie previews. On-screen ads will provide an opportunity for businesses, agencies and even individuals to reach a captive audience while showing your support for your Town Hall Theatre.
**If you are interested in our on-screen advertising email [email protected] and we will get you details and work with you on getting you on screen as soon as we sort out the particulars.
As far as our regular programming goes, we are uncertain as to what movies are going to be available to us. As we are well aware, many major film releases are bypassing theatrical releases until the big city theaters are able to open again. We will also be dealing with the competition of films opening in streaming channels and video-on-demand and we do not know that is going to affect attendance.
As you may well imagine we are on a very steep re-learning curve. Things will be different than they were before we had to close our doors, but please know that we are on the road to getting our doors open again.
To keep in the know of our progress we will use our website (plumasarts.org), email updates (sign up here… https://www.plumasarts.org/contact-us.html ), Town Hall Theatre (https://www.facebook.com/Town-Hall-Theatre-1178275582443290 ) and Plumas Arts (https://www.facebook.com/PlumasArtsCalifornia ) Facebook pages as well as using the theatre marquee and poster kiosks.
Town Hall Theatre Update December 18, 2020
Well folks… Right after our projector was repaired we met with our county public health to review what it would take to safely open the theatre. Even in the Red Tier with a 25% capacity we were planning to give it a try, but then with spiking local cases, our placement in the Purple Tier and new Stay-at-Home orders, it looks like we will have to wait a bit longer. We imagine that will be at least a few more months.
While so many theaters around the country have been forced to close, we see that the film distributors are now releasing new films in Video on Demand to make ends meet on their end. There are doomsday predictions that this will bring the demise of movie theatre-going, but we do not see it that way.
We are heartened and very grateful to our devoted supporters who have been able to make donations to help us get our projector repaired and pay the utilities and expenses still need to be paid even while we are closed, and we know that our Town Hall Theatre is more than just a movie business. Rest assured that we will be back bringing you all together as soon as we safely can.
Programming may look a bit different. We hope for more live performances and a film schedule that includes special interest, documentaries, independent films and we are working on getting connected with London’s National Theater Live to screen some of their extraordinary world-class productions as well as a variety of live presentations. We are brainstorming ideas, investigating opportunities and keeping informed about the changing plans of the feature film industry.
We are looking forward to a time when we can get movies back up on screen, performers back on the stage and welcome you back through our doors. Until then please accept our wishes for a warm and peaceful time at home during this most unusual holiday Season.
Town Hall Theatre Update, October 2020
We want you all to know that we are on the road to getting the Town Hall Theatre reopened. At this point it is an uncertain, long and winding road, but we have a destination of a Winter (fingers crossed) opening goal. That is of course if Plumas County can remain “in the Yellow.”
We got over our first hurdle last week by getting the projector operational once again. Much gratitude goes out to the generous donors* who helped us to get back on screen by funding the $10,000+ repair. That will allow us to be able start anew without such a formidable cash hole to fill. And for that we are most grateful. See the list.
Now that Plumas County is in the Yellow Tier of the Governor’s reopening blueprint we can operate at 50% capacity. That can make it possible to meet expenses of operation, but we have other considerations...
To open we need to abide by COVID safety protocol by wearing masks, social distancing, sanitizing protocols, and ways to effectively monitor attendance so we do not have to turn people away at the door. We will be meeting with public health advisors to help us go over what all that will involve, so we can assess staffing needs and scheduling.
While closed we have been able to assess some ways to make the movie business better and sustainable. We are on our way to accepting credit card sales and navigating the mechanics of on-screen pre-movie advertisements and programming supported by business, organizations, and agency sponsors. We have also taken on some much needed de-cluttering of years of accumulation and a few facility improvements.
At this point the greatest obstacle is that there are not very many new movies for us to choose from. Theaters across the country have been shut down since the pandemic hit, particularly those in the major city markets that the film companies rely on for their big money openings. As a result movie release dates have been postponed and postponed again as film companies negotiate how they can make ends. So many of the potential blockbuster film releases, which have not already been postponed have been moved to streaming channels or video-on-demand limiting our choices even further.
Some theatres that re-opened closed again. Now we hear that some of the major theatre chains (Cinemark, Regal and soon AMC) are temporarily closing until there are enough new films to make things workable again. We want to make sure that once we do open our Town Hall Theatre, we will have enough weekly programming to stay open.
Our staff, board members and friends of Plumas Arts are hearing from so many people that they are looking forward to getting back into our theatre. We want it to be a safe place. As a small rural independent theatre with a devoted following we may stand a good chance of coming back and making it work. We are investigating resources to get a varied schedule of new, vintage, special interest and maybe even a few limited-audience live shows to keep your interest and fill the seats that we are allowed to have occupied. And as for that what we have to say is… Stay tuned for coming attractions!
* Thanks for Getting us Back on Screen!!
TOWN HALL THEATRE UPDATE, August 2020
Let’s begin with this:
We fully plan to re-open, but… Right now we can’t because of COVID restrictions and the actual date remains a moving target. Here is a bit of what has made it hard to know…
THE MOVIES
Release dates for movies we expected to see in the Summer Blockbuster season--Mulan, Wonder Woman 1984, Black Widow, Top Gun: Maverick, No Time to Die to name a few— have all been changed to October or November or into 2021. And in all honesty we would not be surprised if they are pushed back again, since dates are moving farther away on a weekly basis.
Some other of the films we expected to see theaters were released for home viewing. All theaters are hoping that this will stop as soon as we are able to re-open, otherwise we fear as a culture that we may lose the big-screen theatre-going movie experience.
THE MOTIVATION
Theatre-goers are cautiously disinclined to go out, when, in the interest of public health and safety, we are all being asked to be at home. The theaters that closed, did re-open and then had to close again were showing older films. We figure that so many of us have been home watching these films that it will take something new and exciting to bring us back to the movie houses.
THE MATH
Current COVID 19 restrictions limit us to 25% of capacity (60 people) along with physical distancing, sanitizing and mask wearing. Which makes things like concession, bathroom and even entry lines problematical. All pose logistical issues and require more staffing while limiting income, hence the math problem.
Film distributors now take as much as 65% (and at least 50%) of our ticket sales for most movies. That means, at an average $7 tickets with 60 people we bring in no more than $400 a showing and get to keep between $200-$150 of those ticket sales. That does not cover costs. This is why concession sales are so important, since we get to keep more of those sales.
MAKING IT WORK
In the best of time the Town Hall Theatre operates on a barely break-even basis. As we consider new ways to do business, we are looking at: online pre-purchased ticket sales (to avoid turning people away at the door when we reach capacity), credit/debit card sales at the box office and concessions stand, “60 and over only” movie nights and on-screen pre-movie programming sponsored by agencies, businesses and individual community patrons. The last thing we want to do is to raise ticket prices, but we may have to bump them up by a dollar.
THE FIRST THING ON THE ROAD TO RE-OPENING is getting our digital projector up and running again. (A manufacturer equipment flaw caused the internal media interface to fail when they were turned off- a problem most theatres face.) The back-ordered part just arrived and we await a technician from Portland, OR to install it. All told this will be a $10,500 expense. We drained our savings/ reserve account to pay for it since we have had no income for 4 months now, with more to come.
IF YOU CAN MAKE A DONATION TO HELP, IT WOULD BE A MOST GRATEFULLY APPRECIATED.
Mail a check to the Town Hall Theatre, P.O. Box 600, Quincy CA 95971 or donate online via the link below.
Our first on-screen slide will be a “Thanks for Getting us Back on Screen” in recognition those who have been able to made a donation.
The Town Hall Theatre is owned and operated as service to the community by Plumas Arts. To get the most current information subscribe to our email list https://www.plumasarts.org/contact-us.html or become a like us on our Town Hall Theatre Facebook page.
An additional note: The drive-in theatre idea keeps popping up, and much as we love that idea our projector and our screen do not move and our theatrical film licensing makes it impossible for a movie house like our to temporarily move outside.
Let’s begin with this:
We fully plan to re-open, but… Right now we can’t because of COVID restrictions and the actual date remains a moving target. Here is a bit of what has made it hard to know…
THE MOVIES
Release dates for movies we expected to see in the Summer Blockbuster season--Mulan, Wonder Woman 1984, Black Widow, Top Gun: Maverick, No Time to Die to name a few— have all been changed to October or November or into 2021. And in all honesty we would not be surprised if they are pushed back again, since dates are moving farther away on a weekly basis.
Some other of the films we expected to see theaters were released for home viewing. All theaters are hoping that this will stop as soon as we are able to re-open, otherwise we fear as a culture that we may lose the big-screen theatre-going movie experience.
THE MOTIVATION
Theatre-goers are cautiously disinclined to go out, when, in the interest of public health and safety, we are all being asked to be at home. The theaters that closed, did re-open and then had to close again were showing older films. We figure that so many of us have been home watching these films that it will take something new and exciting to bring us back to the movie houses.
THE MATH
Current COVID 19 restrictions limit us to 25% of capacity (60 people) along with physical distancing, sanitizing and mask wearing. Which makes things like concession, bathroom and even entry lines problematical. All pose logistical issues and require more staffing while limiting income, hence the math problem.
Film distributors now take as much as 65% (and at least 50%) of our ticket sales for most movies. That means, at an average $7 tickets with 60 people we bring in no more than $400 a showing and get to keep between $200-$150 of those ticket sales. That does not cover costs. This is why concession sales are so important, since we get to keep more of those sales.
MAKING IT WORK
In the best of time the Town Hall Theatre operates on a barely break-even basis. As we consider new ways to do business, we are looking at: online pre-purchased ticket sales (to avoid turning people away at the door when we reach capacity), credit/debit card sales at the box office and concessions stand, “60 and over only” movie nights and on-screen pre-movie programming sponsored by agencies, businesses and individual community patrons. The last thing we want to do is to raise ticket prices, but we may have to bump them up by a dollar.
THE FIRST THING ON THE ROAD TO RE-OPENING is getting our digital projector up and running again. (A manufacturer equipment flaw caused the internal media interface to fail when they were turned off- a problem most theatres face.) The back-ordered part just arrived and we await a technician from Portland, OR to install it. All told this will be a $10,500 expense. We drained our savings/ reserve account to pay for it since we have had no income for 4 months now, with more to come.
IF YOU CAN MAKE A DONATION TO HELP, IT WOULD BE A MOST GRATEFULLY APPRECIATED.
Mail a check to the Town Hall Theatre, P.O. Box 600, Quincy CA 95971 or donate online via the link below.
Our first on-screen slide will be a “Thanks for Getting us Back on Screen” in recognition those who have been able to made a donation.
The Town Hall Theatre is owned and operated as service to the community by Plumas Arts. To get the most current information subscribe to our email list https://www.plumasarts.org/contact-us.html or become a like us on our Town Hall Theatre Facebook page.
An additional note: The drive-in theatre idea keeps popping up, and much as we love that idea our projector and our screen do not move and our theatrical film licensing makes it impossible for a movie house like our to temporarily move outside.
TOWN HALL THEATRE UPDATE, May 2020
When we temporarily shuttered the Town Hall Theatre on March 17, 2020 and changed the marquee, we did not know how long our doors would stay closed. Reading the marquee now as COMING BACK SOON, seems a bit optimistic. While tempted to change the message, we prefer to go with optimism as opposed to accuracy in this case.
The fact is, we are uncertain as to when we will be allowed to/ when it will be safe, or economically feasible to reopen. We figured to be closed for April and May, maybe June; as we move through Summer we are hoping for the Fall.
Needless to say the theatre closure translates, not only to no access to a much-loved community gathering space, but also a significant loss of income for the business managed by Plumas Arts. In the last weeks the Town Hall Theatre has “lost” tens of thousands of dollars in ticket sales and venue rental fees, with much more to follow in the ensuing months.
To make matters bite even more, theaters were not warned that shutting down our projectors for an extended period would cause equipment failures. By the time we were informed of this our internet media block had lost its coding and now must be replaced. Christie, the projector manufacturer, has come up with a new part that will not have that problem. A technician from Portland will come to replace it when travel restrictions are relaxed.
It will cost us $10,500+ to get that projector back on screen. In a time of such financial distress and so much need, we did not plan to burden the community with a cry for help, but people have been asking where they can send donations. If you are in a position to do so and are so inclined, mail them to: Town Hall Theatre, P.O. Box 600, Quincy 95971 and it will be gratefully accepted.
There are silver linings… Acts of kindness have inspired and brought tears. Some of our most loyal patrons, lesser effected in this crisis, have mailed checks for what they would have spent coming to the movies while we are closed. So many want to help insure that their hometown theatre will be okay. We will.
We can’t wait to bring you back together at your Town Hall Theatre!
We will be back. Absolutely. We just can’t give you a date right now.
Until then please be safe and well.
With Kind Regards from Plumas Arts and the Town Hall Theatre
When we temporarily shuttered the Town Hall Theatre on March 17, 2020 and changed the marquee, we did not know how long our doors would stay closed. Reading the marquee now as COMING BACK SOON, seems a bit optimistic. While tempted to change the message, we prefer to go with optimism as opposed to accuracy in this case.
The fact is, we are uncertain as to when we will be allowed to/ when it will be safe, or economically feasible to reopen. We figured to be closed for April and May, maybe June; as we move through Summer we are hoping for the Fall.
Needless to say the theatre closure translates, not only to no access to a much-loved community gathering space, but also a significant loss of income for the business managed by Plumas Arts. In the last weeks the Town Hall Theatre has “lost” tens of thousands of dollars in ticket sales and venue rental fees, with much more to follow in the ensuing months.
To make matters bite even more, theaters were not warned that shutting down our projectors for an extended period would cause equipment failures. By the time we were informed of this our internet media block had lost its coding and now must be replaced. Christie, the projector manufacturer, has come up with a new part that will not have that problem. A technician from Portland will come to replace it when travel restrictions are relaxed.
It will cost us $10,500+ to get that projector back on screen. In a time of such financial distress and so much need, we did not plan to burden the community with a cry for help, but people have been asking where they can send donations. If you are in a position to do so and are so inclined, mail them to: Town Hall Theatre, P.O. Box 600, Quincy 95971 and it will be gratefully accepted.
There are silver linings… Acts of kindness have inspired and brought tears. Some of our most loyal patrons, lesser effected in this crisis, have mailed checks for what they would have spent coming to the movies while we are closed. So many want to help insure that their hometown theatre will be okay. We will.
We can’t wait to bring you back together at your Town Hall Theatre!
We will be back. Absolutely. We just can’t give you a date right now.
Until then please be safe and well.
With Kind Regards from Plumas Arts and the Town Hall Theatre
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The Town Hall Theatre is located at 469 Main St. in Quincy, CA.
Movies show at 7PM each night with a 4PM Sunday matinee. Exceptions are noted. Admission:
The Town Hall Theatre is loved and managed by Plumas Arts. To keep up on what's playing: pick up a monthly schedule at the box office, call the movie line at 283-1140. You can also become a member and have a monthly email of upcoming attractions sent to you. |
The Town Hall Theatre will be closed temporarily, but we will be
BACK AS SOON AS WE CAN BE
BACK AS SOON AS WE CAN BE
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Magic Beanstalk Theatre's cast of The Wizard of Oz Junior gathers before a performance in front of the Town Hall Theatre's new mural.
Photo by Tina Thorman, © 2018 |
