LOCAL LANDMARK
We’re looking at people differently. We’ve got a place where local storytellers have a place to share.
Plaza Theatre By El l en Howl e He adds that basically, the theatre is going to be totally redone, “head-to-toe”. They’ll restructure the balcony, splitting it in half, so then they can have three screens to work with. There will be a rooftop patio and an elevator to the top of the building. “We’ll also be adding dressing rooms backstage and some other fun things like a 35MM changeover system – we haven’t been able to have 35MM since 2012, so we’ll be more able to show more rare films!” Escobar says his favorite part of the theatre is the marquee, but what he really loves is that he’s running the oldest theatre in the city. He takes that very seriously. “What’s really fun is that the Plaza opened as a vaudeville cinema. It wasn’t just about the screen, it was also about what’s on stage,” says Escobar. “I love hearing these stories about people who tell me this is where they had their first date. The theatre has a real connection to this community and I really treasure that. What’s really cool is that at least since the 80s the Plaza has always been a place for everyone. Ru Paul worked at the Plaza Theatre, developing his drag act back then and it’s always been a place where people have been able to develop their stories.” In today’s world, where the majority of theatres are playing reboot movies, Escobar says he wants to make his theatre a different kind of space. “We’re looking at people differently. We’ve got a place where local storytellers have a place to share.” Escobar works eight days a week, sometimes, but he doesn’t regret a moment of it. “It’s just exciting, flatter-
Photos by Aiva Genys
1 939 was film’s golden year, with the releases of history-making movies like Gone with the Wind , Wizard of Oz , and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington . But it was also the year Atlanta’s oldest theatre opened its doors and began showing films. “It was the biggest year in movies to date,” says Chris Escobar, the Plaza Theatre’s owner since 2017. “Some of the biggest titles were released and they sold the most tickets in movie history. This was a time that was pre-television and some people went to the movies three or five times a week.” Escobar believes in his theatre and works hard to make sure that films that matter are shown on the screens. He’s also working on preserving the history of his cinema while making improvements to old designs, hoping to draw in more moviegoers. He says that George LeFont took it from a porn theatre and made it into an art theatre and he wants to build even more on that. “I’ve seen the changes with the previous owner and was involved in them. Last October marked my two-year anniversary as the owner,” says Escobar. “Right now, we’re working on changes that will be even more transformational than in previous years. “There are a number of projects that we’re going to do. Once we’re done, it might be almost unrecognizable,” says Escobar excitedly. “We’re going to change concessions and the bar. We’ve basically had a makeshift bar and it served us well as a service bar, but we’re changing it into an art deco bar. We’ll redo the bathrooms that haven’t been redone since 1983, and much more.”
ing, aggravating, and humbling all at once.” He says he hangs in by trying to have spe- cial moments for his family to keep them all refueled. He held his daugh- ter’s 6th birthday at the theatre, and in December 2019 they had a fund- raiser for St. Jude,
Chris Escobar
his wife’s non-profit passion. He says things like this keep him grounded and focused on working harder to keep the theatre going. “I keep going with the excitement and hope of what’s to come. I know that if I just accepted the status quo, then that would be it for me,” says Escobar. “It’s already hard enough to run a movie theatre, period, but we’re operating at a loss, even though we’re earning more dollars than we have in 20 years.” He doesn’t regret it, though. “We’re just rolling with the punches and I am constantly recharged by the amount of incredible support and enthusiasm we get from the people. I just know we’ll be able to get out ahead of it and be fine.”
www.plazaatlanta.com
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