ANN ARBOR, Mich. — In celebration of its 75th birthday, The Michigan Theater Foundation is pleased to announce that movies at the new State Theatre will open to the public on Saturday, December 9 at 1:00 p.m. The State Theatre is located at 233 S. State Street at the intersection of State Street and Liberty Street in downtown Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Now in the final stages of revitalization for the Grand Re-opening, The State Theatre has been a visual and activity anchor for downtown Ann Arbor for 75 years. It brings history, diversity and excitement to the community while stimulating the economy of the Liberty and State Street area. Restoring the theatre to its former glory and enhancing it with modern amenities ensures that generations to come will benefit from its cultural and economic impact, while helping to position the Michigan Theater Foundation as an international leader of art-house cinema programming.
Together the Michigan Theater and the State Theatre are the finest combination of classic and contemporary Art House cinema screens in the United States. The Michigan Theater will have projections booths capable of showing almost any gage and type of celluloid film, as well as that ability to show almost any digital cinema format. The State Theatre has been transformed into a comfortable, modern and excellent four screen Art House. The State and Michigan combined screen capacity (6 screens) and wide ranging and excellent technical capabilities is unique in the country.
Under the guidance of The Michigan Theater Foundation, The State Theatre strives to better serve the community while preserving the vision that renowned Architect C. Howard Crane had created back in 1942, with some of the following new amenities that can be experienced and enjoyed starting December 9th.
- Restored and refreshed Art Deco design of the façade, entrance, lobby, and restrooms.
- A full-size elevator.
- Realigned comfortable seating and increased legroom.
- Four custom cinema screens – a 133 seat, a 100 seat, a 78 seat, and a 49 seat auditorium – with ample legroom.
- All auditoriums will be handicapped accessible and there will be new ADA features for mobility-impaired, hearing-impaired, and vision-impaired citizens.
- New heating, cool, plumbing, electrical, and safety systems in the building.
- All auditoriums have updated movie projections and sound systems from Dolby Digital Surround Sound.
- Completely renovated concession stand.
- New men and women’s bathrooms and a separate gender neutral / family bathroom.
The State Theatre still has a few projects in the works that will give patrons something to come back and experience in early 2018.
- A fully operational escalator.
- A full-service cocktail bar with extensive wine and beer selections including local craft brews and ciders.
- A wide variety of Michigan-themed snack mixes available at the concession stand.
The State Theatre’s goal is to show “the must see” arthouse films, which includes the best new releases as well as highly-celebrated festival programming, repertory films, cult classics, and much more. Opening weekend features will include new releases THE DISASTER ARTIST, THE SQUARE, and HUMAN FLOW. There will be a special engagement of the Detroit-filmed DESTINED, running December 8-13, with a special guest appearance by Director and Ann Arbor native, Qasim Basir. In honor of the 75th birthday celebration of the State Theatre, a 1942 Series will feature daily showings of 1942 classics such as THE FLEET’S IN, SABOTEUR, YANKEE DOODLE DANDY,and WOMAN OF THE YEAR. Friday and Saturday will feature the late-night series at 10:00 p.m. with showings of THE BIG LEBOWSKI, THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW, and the longest running State Theatre midnight movie, HAROLD AND MAUDE. Showtimes are subject to change; please visit www.statetheatrea2.org, for updates.
Tickets are now on sale and are available at www.statetheatrea2.org/schedule. State Theatre film tickets are $10 for adults, $8 for students, seniors, and children under 12 and $7.50 for Michigan & State Theater members. Matinees (all shows before 6:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, excluding holidays) are $7 for all guests. Late night and midnight movies are $8. Special ticket prices will apply for special film presentations and non-State Theatre-sponsored films. In addition, The State Theatre will provide all of their guests with “No-Stress Reserved Seating” option where they can choose an assigned seat at the time of their ticket purchase.
Memberships for the Michigan and State Theater Foundation are still available and start at only $35, which allow for discounted movie tickets, invitations to members-only parties, and much more. Memberships also make great gifts for those movie lovers in your life. For more information about memberships, or how to get involved, please visit http://statetheatrea2.org/theatre-membership/
Source: The Michigan Theatre Foundation
