Saukville cinema remains closed during pandemic

Avid moviegoers will have to remain patient this summer if they want to catch a flick at the Marcus Saukville Cinema.

The movie theater at 350 S. Riverside Dr. has been closed since March due to the coronavirus pandemic and officials of Marcus Corp. have not set a reopening date.

“Our intention is wholeheartedly that the Saukville Cinema will reopen its doors,” Marcus Theatres Director of Marketing and Communications Mari Randa said. “We’re hopeful that it will be within a month from now, but we don’t have a specific date. It is predicated on new movies coming out.”  

Randa said two of the 24 theaters Marcus operates in Wisconsin have reopened in New Berlin and Appleton. Marcus is the fourth-largest movie theater company in the country with 91 cinemas in 17 states.  

On June 19, six Marcus theaters in the state temporarily opened to test their new safety procedures, which include social distancing, thorough cleaning between shows and employees and guests wearing masks. Randa said customers have been encouraged to order their tickets in advance and to use a mobile app to purchase concessions before arriving to the theater.  

“We’re not trying to disrupt the experience, but we are being very thoughtful about how we make it a safe way for you to get out of your house and get entertained,” Randa said, noting the theaters that have returned to business are open on Tuesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday and have three to four shows per day. 

During the pandemic, the movie industry has delayed releasing new films even though the summer is typically the busiest season for theaters. Randa said Marcus theaters that are open have been featuring classic films and other movies that were released before the shutdown to help fill the void of new releases. 

“Without new movie releases, we’re bringing back the classics and we’re bringing back things that were up on the big screen before the pandemic hit and everything went on lockdown,” she said. “We’re trying to roll into a phased opening, but we’re also trying to time that with new movie releases so we’re sure that we have a product that folks want to come back to the theaters to see.”

Although the old films are fan favorites, Randa said it is difficult to create a demand because most of those films can be viewed at home.

Randa said she expects more theaters to reopen by Labor Day after upcoming spy film “Tenet” is released internationally on Aug. 22. 

“There are other movies, but folks are using some of the bigger movies like ‘Tenet’ to gauge the timing for reopening,” she said. “At this point, we really need a combination of new movie releases to come out and we are also diligently following the protocols and changes that are happening in those communities to make sure that we are aligned with those guidelines and have new movies on hand to show.”

Marcus’ cinema in Brookfield is showing films outside in its parking lot, but it is a logistical challenge to provide the drive-in experience at the company’s other locations. 

“We have buildings that were designed to be indoor theaters and not outdoor theaters. You have to worry about sightlines, how many vehicles and what kind of movies we can be showing when there aren’t any new movies,” she said. “We are running into the same challenges for outdoor shows like we are for the traditional, indoor-cinema experience.”

New releases aren’t the only offering moviegoers are missing out on, Randa said. Eight of Marcus’ theaters in Wisconsin, including the North Shore Cinema in Mequon, are offering curbside pickup for food.

“When the pandemic hit, we also knew people were also missing out on things like popcorn, so we decided to do curbside pickup for popcorn at the North Shore,” she said, noting the cinema’s restaurant, Zaffiro’s Pizza, is also open for curbside pickup. 

Randa said she expects there to be pent-up demand for attending area theaters when the pandemic begins to subside and she said Marcus theaters will be ready to give people what they want in a safe setting. 

“Our organization is committed to the theater-going experience. There’s nothing like getting people together and going to see a movie. It was meant to be a social experience and movies were meant to be seen on the big screen and we believe that it’s going to be back,” she said. “We know that folks are anxious to get back to the movies.”