The following is an exclusive interview with the new management for the Coronado Village Theatre: Lance Alspaugh (Five Star Theatres Inc.)
Lance, thanks for taking the time to speak with eCoronado.com. Please introduce yourself and share your background in theatre re-development and your current role in the renovation and management of the Coronado Village Theatre.
All of us here at Five Star Theatres appreciate the opportunity to help bring the Village Theatre back to life in the very near future. We currently operate 2 movie theatres in the Los Angeles/Los Feliz area (The Vista Theatre | Los Feliz 3 Cinemas). I have been in the film exhibition business spanning over 30 years and my Management Team shares over 50 years of experience among the 3 of them. It is certainly our pleasure and privilege to have this rare opportunity to give something back to the community.
As you may be aware the road to secure the Village Theater ran its course over eight years, several negotiation sessions and a few setbacks. I must credit The Redevelopment Agency of the City of Coronado as they were instrumental in the successful completion of the process and a special thanks go out to Rachel Hurst for her outstanding work and effort in this regard.
When I originally purchased Five Star Theatres, we decided to renovate our Vista Theatre, a 1923 single screen movie theatre that was in major disrepair very similar to the Village Theatre. We decided against all odds (cosmetically and financial) to dive in with a total cosmetic renovation on the theatre with the City of Los Angeles contributing with a seismic retrofit. There are so many details as to how we accomplished the renovation that they cannot be clearly discussed here. But I can tell you that it took 3 years to complete. We were not fortunate to have a Grant available such as the Agency Grant from the Redevelopment Agency of Coronado, so the work was completed in phases as we had the money to do it. With each phase we noticed the audience responded in greater numbers. The Vista is now a wanted venue by the movie going public and film distributors alike. Film fare presented is Big Screen entertainment and films with an edge such as the Quentin Tarentino films. Internet surfers can see some photos of our Vista Theatre by logging on to www.cinemasightlines.com as well as other sites that may be found throughout the web.
Our Los Feliz 3 Cinemas posed different challenges. Also in need of a cosmetic face lift though not as severe as the Vista, there was little to retain as far as cosmetics or atmosphere in this large single screen venue. So the decision to Triplex the theatre (that is, creating 3 auditoriums out of one large 750 seat auditorium) offered more film choices for the audience in a virtually brand new movie theatre. Financing from outside sources was necessary for this job and it was completed in 1993 after one year of construction. The Los Feliz 3 Cinemas presents foreign, art and eclectic film fare and works nicely as a move over house for our Vista Theatre. It also hosts selected festivals and special events from time to time.
We expect the Village Theatre in Coronado will be our Crown Jewel, and is it not appropriate as the City is known for its Crown! We are working closely with the Redevelopment Agency and are in final negotiations to secure a skilled and creative Architectural Firm specializing in Theatre Design and Construction. The name of the firm and principal players will be made public in the near future.
Many folks in Coronado are very anxious to find out the timeline of the new theatre. Can you share with us the latest status and goals to getting the project completed?
Our agreement with Redevelopment Agency stipulates a certain timeline for completion of the project. While we have a window of 18 months, our goal is to bring the project to life sooner rather than later. Very soon an architect will be selected and at that point preliminary plans and a schematic design will be created. The process will continue through various phases until the renovation/remodel is complete. We are committed to have the Village Theatre opened no later than summer the end of 2010 Spring of 2011 but will be working very hard to have it opened sooner. As we progress, target dates will improve!
What will be the style or theme of the Village Theatre? Are there any dramatic changes planned?
One of the ingredients I knew the Village Theatre had to have was a great atmosphere inside. There was only one man I could think of that had a natural vision for all things theatre and that is Joseph Musil. Mr. Musil, a former Disney Artist, is well known in Hollywood for his stunning renovation on the El Capitan Theatre, still owned and operated by Disney. His talents can also be seen at the Crest Theatre in Westwood and the Fine Arts in Beverly Hills. As you will see in the near future, Mr. Musil has developed sumptuous eye candy for the Village Theatre and we will be presenting his Final Concept Designs within a few months. Dramatic changes are in store INDEED! Photos of the El Capitan Theatre can also be seen on www.cinemasightlines.com
How many screens with the theatre have? Any rough numbers on how many it will hold?
As with our Vista Theatre, the Village as it exists today is a large 625 seat single screen. There are many financial reasons why the Village cannot survive as a single screen like our operating Vista Theatre. The Vista is successful because of our Los Feliz Cinemas a short 6 blocks away. Movies can play the Vista one or two weeks and then be taken out for new films. In other words, the Vista changes films regularly compared to most multiplexes. Unfortunately, Coronado does not have any other movie theatre, which we are happy about for several reasons but frustrated just the same as restoring just the Single Screen would be wonderful. First Run film terms require minimum playtime of 2, 3 and 4 weeks. Holding a film for 3 weeks, with only a few exceptions, will not allow the Village to financially survive. And for the movie going audience, variety is the spice of life. So we must create a way for film to flow through the theatre on a regular basis. This will be accomplished by creating one or two additional screening rooms within the confines of the building. So in a nutshell, we are shooting for one Large Main Auditorium holding 250 seats and 2 VIP Screening Rooms holding 35 – 45 seats. But its not the size that counts as they say, its what you do with it that matters. Not only will the screening rooms provide exceptional seating comfort, viewer sightlines and state of the art Digital presentations for the audience, but they will also be adorned with gorgeous atmospheres created by Joseph Musil. More on this as it develops.
What can you share with us about the type of movies that will be shown? Will there be any other offerings besides movies?
The Village Theater will strive to offer Big Screen entertainment of quality whenever it is available in the Main Auditorium. You can likely expect summer and holiday blockbusters such as the Harry Potter series, Spiderman, Shrek, X Men, etc with film fare catered to more Adult and discriminating audiences in the VIP Screening Rooms. We may also have special events that could include live performances, music, Classic Movie Screening or Closed Circuit Events. More about this as the weeks progress.
What type of snack, food or drink items to you envision to keep moviegoers satisfied during the movie?
We do not want our audience to get parched or hungry, so we will have Freshly Popped Popcorn at every intermission and for those that don’t mind cheating on their diet Real Butter! Soft Drinks will be Coca Cola or Pepsi products (negotiating on this). Other items include Eisenberg Hotdogs, Cafe and Hot Drinks, Selected candy favorites and some gourmet upscale treats as well. Incidentally, our Los Feliz Cinemas recently ranked #2 Best Popcorn in the Los Angeles Magazine movie edition! More on food as the weeks progress.
What do you see as your biggest challenge to completing this project?
The project is exciting, thrilling and a little, well, challenging. Quite simply our biggest challenge and concern is staying within budget. Plain and simple we must come in at or below 2.5 million.
Thanks so much for your time and work on this project. The Coronado community is so excited to be able to watch movies again and have another empty building brought back to life on Orange Avenue.
I am available by email and thank you again for the opportunity to report in to your readers.
Lance Alspaugh
Five Star Theatres Inc.
[email protected]
