Patio Theater
I grew up in the Regal and AMC dominated land known as suburbia. All I ever knew in regards to going to the movies was a minimum thirteen screen multiplex. I didn't get to the theater often as a child, so when we did go, it was quite the special experience. I remember being in awe of the ticket booths, the neon signs, the life size cardboard cutouts, arcade games, and the super long concession stand. Lately though we seem to be entering an era where that special theater experience has begun to vanish. Many say the future is in home theaters, I however have a new growing interest in a different movie experience. That experience is the revival of 'movie palaces.' A few years ago, when I moved to Chicago, I began to notice marquees and theaters all over the city that looked abandoned. I'd go home and do my research on them. I discovered stories of the great histories behind shuttered places such as the Goldcoast Theater and the infamous Uptown Theater (the largest movie palace in the United States). I thought to myself how amazing it would be to reopen one of these old places for the public to come in and enjoy once again. After thousands of dollars in repairs, last June, owner Demetri Kouvalis reopened the doors to Portage Park's Patio Theater (built in 1927). The single screen, 1500 seat auditorium is beautiful with its starry skied ceiling and classic movie palace facade. The lobby and ticket booth are built to match. The screen size rivals just about any you can find in the multiplexes downtown. Sure it's about an hour away from the loop, but to experience old Hollywood at $5 a ticket for a movie thats only 3-4 weeks old is a steal. On top of that, concessions are half the price that they are at any other theater in the city. I've been going to the Patio quite a bit lately and its quickly become a favorite place of mine.
Currently they are trying to raise money for the purchase of a digital projector so that they will be able to continue to show new release films after the studios complete the digital distribution transition next year. They are doing this by doing special screenings of classics in their original 35mm state. So far they've done Back to the Future, The Blues Brothers, and Jurassic Park (which I went to see and was an amazing experience on the big screen with an audience for the first time). I know for fact that this will continue throughout the summer and am pretty sure it will continue throughout the rest of 2012. If you want a different movie going experience than the multiplex you've been going to for years, make sure to put The Patio on your to do list. Where is it? 6008 W. Irving Park Rd. Chicago, IL 60634 http://www.patiotheater.net















