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Rock'n'Roll Multiplex. So, now you have a choice. You can fork over $49.50 for a nosebleed seat to see Prince live at Staples Arena in L.A., or you can splurge a big fifteen bucks to see the same concert simulcast live at any of 40 Regal Cinema movie theaters, reports Eleena De Lisser in The Wall Street Journal. "Obviously, you always prefer to see a group live," comments Alan Skversky, "who recently watched a simulcast Yes concert with his nine-year-old son at a Regal Cinema in Emeryville, California. But, he said, this was the next best thing -- some in the audience showed up in Yes T-shirts, danced in the aisles. "After every song everybody just erupted," says Alan.
That's music to the ears of Regal Cinemas, regalcm.com, which having invested some $74 million over the past three years in spectacular, digital sound systems and stadium-style seating across its 5,300 screens, is now decided its "in the business of entertaining, not just screening movies." They have to be, because where movies are concerned, "admissions fell four percent in 2003, and box-office sales fell by just under one percent, to $9.5 billion, according to the Motion Picture Association of America." This "emerging marriage of convenience between theater operators with lots of empty seats on weeknights and the troubled record companies, which are grappling for ways to reach new audiences" will play out in the days ahead with "one-night-only broadcasts of performances by top acts like Linkin Park, Beyonce and Gloria Estafan."
In some cases, the events are nearly pure-play promotions. Regal last month played host to a live appearance by former Depeche Mode singer David Gahan to promote his new DVD, "Live Monsters," featuring DVD footage on a 40-foot screen. Said one smitten attendee: "Seeing him so close had something dreamy about it." Other theaters, meanwhile, have been exploring multiplex ways to attract more people with wallets -- everything from installing loveseats to serving alcohol. One of the more interesting concepts is that of the Alamo Drafthouse, drafthouse.com, in Texas, "a nine-theater chain" where patrons "can enjoy a beer and fish-and-chips while watching new movies like 50 First Dates and Starsky & Hutch." The setup apparently is particularly attractive to young parents, who can have dinner and a movie all in one shot, spending less time away from baby, less money on a sitter -- and, of course, leaving more money at the theater.
Tim Manners, editor
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©2004 reveries.com |
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