Town Hall Theatre announces new protocols; seeks public’s support

The Town Hall Theatre has modified its operating protocols following the release of new state guidelines.

Face Covering Guidelines: Fully vaccinated persons are no longer required to wear facemasks to enter the theatre or while in the auditorium. As prescribed by state and county public health guidance unvaccinated persons are still required to be masked at all times unless actively eating or drinking.

Capacity limits have been lifted. Spacing guidelines have also been relaxed. There will no longer be ushers seating patrons. There should be ample room for spacing between parties.

Theatre staff will continue to monitor concession lines. Should lines become too congested, staff will request that patrons be seated and they will be called back as space allows. Because your concession purchases are essential to the viability of the movie business, as has been the policy in the past, no outside concessions will be allowed.

Online ticket sales will remain in place. The theatre is pleased that so many of its patrons appreciate this option and are taking advantage of it. You may pre-purchase tickets on the Town Hall Theatre movie tab at plumasarts.org The online ticket purchase portal is turned off one hour prior to the start of the movie. Regular show times are 7 p.m. on Friday, Saturday and Monday and 4 p.m. on Monday.

Theatre management appreciates patrons arriving at the theatre at least 15 minutes prior to show times. This helps to avoid a last minute rushes at the box office and concessions and allows us to get everyone seated before the movie begins.   

Credit card sales are accepted at the box office and concessions stand. The theatre is working with the Plumas County based Merchants XL processing company for credit card sales. In order for small businesses like the theatre to not be overwhelmed by credit card fees, their service employs a 4 percent convenience fee that is charged to the credit card user rather than the business. This translates to a 32¢ charge for an $8 adult ticket. To avoid this fee, the Town Hall Theatre still gladly accepts cash transactions.

How is the theatre doing?

In all honesty, at this point, we are not actually making ends meet. Re-opening expenses, due to pandemic protocols and more than a year of being closed, have exceeded our income from ticket sales and concessions.

Attendance has been down considerably. This is not surprising since many are not yet comfortable returning to an indoor venue. But the greater issue has been that most films that are available for theatrical release are simultaneously being released on streaming platforms. We are beginning to see some small changes with a few films available only to theatres. We hope that this trend continues to expand and that the value of that BIG SCREEN movie experience regains its place in the hearts of the movie-going public.

We know we have to give it bit of time. It seems that not everyone is aware that we have re-opened; we are asking people to help us spread the word. We have not raised admission prices for many years, and we are hoping that it will not come to that.

For now we have come up and are working on new sources to bring in additional income… 

Advertise on our BIG SCREEN… Since re-opening we have been hosting a slide show for the 30 minutes prior to show times. We are grateful to the businesses and agencies that have allocated their advertising dollars to help us stay open. The Town Hall Theatre welcomes others to show their support in big screen slides that describe their services or upcoming events in big screen ads to our patrons while they are seated and waiting for the movie to begin. Our pre-movie slide shows are updated each month. You can choose to run your ads monthly, quarterly or annually basis updating your content each month.

Are you interested in renting the theatre for… workplace conferences, private film screenings, and big- screen gaming nights? As we get our feet under us again we are working out details for these and making plans for music and film events, performing arts presentations and more because the Town Hall Theatre is more than just a place to see movies it is a place where we can gather together again to share some memorable experiences.

If you would like information about onscreen ads or rentals, email [email protected]

We area also very gratefully to our patron who make donations at the concessions and those that send us checks or donations online https://www.plumasarts.org/donate-to-theatre.html to help us keep the theatre open.

Stay tuned for coming attractions… June 25-28 is the family friendly animated film SPIRIT UNTAMED and in July: A QUIET PLACE II, HERE TODAY a comedy with Tiffany Haddish and Billy Crystal, THE HITMANS’S WIFE’S BODYGUARD with an all-star cast including Ryan Reynolds, Samuel L. Jackson, Salma Hayek, Antonio Banderas and Morgan Freeman, the Lin Manuel Miranda (creator of Hamilton) musical IN THE HEIGHTS and the community and life affirming film DREAM HORSE. Check out the movie schedule here… https://www.plumasarts.org/town-hall-theatre.html

To keep in the know of what the Town Hall Theatre and Plumas Arts has to offer subscribe to our free monthly emails https://www.plumasarts.org/contact-us.html, like us on our Town Hall Theatre or Plumas Arts Facebook pages or click our ad on Plumas News online.

We look forward to seeing you back at YOUR Town Hall Theatre!