Royal rises from the dead
Last week one of the best independent theatres in the city got a reprieve.
The Royal on College near Clinton was one of three theatres owned by the McQuillan family slated for closure. In May the family said that the Revue, Kingsway and Royal would close by June 30. They cited the financial difficulties of running independent theatres in the face of modern multiplexes as on of the reasons for the decision.
But now in a $2.2m deal Theatre D Digital <http://www.theatred.com>, an independent canadian post-production company, has purchased the Royal and renovation are underway. According to Theatre D Digital they “want to reassure everyone that this landmark cinema is safe in the hands of people who are committed to the spirit of film and filmmaking.” Theatre D Digital is a Toronto-based postproduction film company. It plans to restore the theatre's red velvet seats and ornate moulding to their original grandeur.
The Royal will continue to be a vibrant independent theatre in the evenings and a modern production studio by day. This allows filmmakers to walk out of the (soon to be installed editing suites) and into the main theatre and see what their work looks like on the big screen
The renovations will continue for the next month and it’s anticipated that the silver screen will light up in September.
Independent theatres in the city have run into financial trouble. The story is the same all over North America. High taxes, declining ticket sales, multiplexes and the rise of DVD as the preferred way to see films after their first run.
The Royal was opened in 1939 designed with art deco elegance with a state-of-the-art Dolby stereo system, a 40-foot screen and semi-reclining sightline seats. When it opened it was called the Pylon. After a brief affair as a chop-socky cinema (and aptly renamed the Golden Dragon) it went out of business until it was rescued from becoming a parking lot when the McQuillan family’s Festival theatre chain picked it up.
