Business & Tech

Fans Eagerly Await First Look at Village Theater

Re-vamped theater draws movie buffs and the curious on opening night.

Coronado celebrated Thursday as if Owen Wilson himself were coming to town for the premiere of Cars 2.

But this time it was the venue itself, rather than the stars or the film, that was the marquee attraction.

“I've seen this theater since I was born,” said Alice Secal, who walked by and inquired about buying tickets for a Friday showing of Cars 2, the first new film to be shown at the Village Theater. “We're excited to see it open again.”

The theater, shuttered and surrendered to decay for more than a decade, opened to happy fans, some of whom, like Secal, spent their childhoods taking in films on its single screen.

The theater, rehabilitated by Vintage Cinemas Inc. of Los Angeles, in a nod to the modern era, now features three screens. Documentaries and special previews were shown Thursday before Cars 2 opens Friday.

Winnie Pierce, of Imperial Beach, watched over the last several months as construction workers crafted the new space. In the early evening, she scored two of a handful of tickets that remained for the 9:45 p.m. grand opening screening.

“It gives me a reason to get out of the house and put some heels on,” she said. “I'm excited to come back later and see the history.”

Vintage Cinemas won a $2.7 million grant from the city's redevelopment agency to take over the neglected property, established as a theater in 1947.

The firm will operate the theater through 2026.


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