| Plaza Theatre | |
|---|---|
| Address | 1049 Ponce De Leon Avenue |
| City | Atlanta |
| Architect | George Harwell Bond |
| Owned by | Jonathan & Gayle Rej |
| Type | Independent film |
| Opened | 1939 |
The Plaza Theatre is an Atlanta landmark and the city’s oldest continuously operating movie theatre.[1] It is home to several weekly and monthly events, including The Rocky Horror Picture Show and both the Silver Scream Spookshow[2] and Splatter Cinema[3], mixed-media events featuring live performances and the screening of a classic sci-fi or horror film, respectively.[4]
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Designed by architect George Harwell Bond, the Plaza Theatre opened on December 23, 1939, as an art deco cinema and live theater space. It was the neighborhood cinema for the Druid Hills, Virginia Highland and Poncey-Highland neighborhoods of Atlanta. It is an anchor of the Briarcliff Plaza on Ponce de Leon Avenue, Atlanta's first shopping center with off-street parking. The first film screened was the Joan Crawford-Norma Shearer vehicle The Women.[5]
In the 1970s, the Plaza became an X-rated adult cinema and live burlesque theatre, screening such risqué fare as Teeny Buns and Swinging Sorority, until the entire shopping center was renovated by current owner Robert Griffith.[5]
In 1983, movie theatre entrepreneur George Lefont bought the theatre and renovated the 1000-seat space by converting the balcony area into a second auditorium.[6] The Lefont era witnessed an influx of independent, foreign, and art-house movies that would become the norm from 1983 to the present. The 1990s and 2000s witnessed a financial struggle for the Plaza, and the theatre was put up for sale in 2006.[4]
In late 2006, Atlanta natives Jonathan and Gayle Rej purchased the theatre, and in early 2010, the Plaza Theatre Foundation became a nonprofit organization. Still retaining the original marquee and many of the original furnishings, the Plaza Theatre is now the oldest continuously operating theatre in Atlanta.[1]
Since 2000, the fan group Lips Down on Dixie has hosted Atlanta's contribution to The Rocky Horror Picture Show cult following, screening the film at midnight every Friday, with pre-show activities and a "shadow cast" live performance and audience participation simultaneous with the movie.[7]
More recently, the Silver Scream Spookshow,has been hosted at The Plaza by Atlanta horror personality "Professor Morte". The show pairs live comic and burlesque performances with screenings of classic science fiction movies, including Creature from the Black Lagoon, Frankenstein, and many films in the Godzilla franchise. Similarly, Splatter Cinema has brought re-creations of grisly movie scenes to the Plaza's lobby, paired with screenings of classic horror films such as Herschell Gordon Lewis's Blood Feast and Two Thousand Maniacs!, as well as movies in the Friday the 13th and A Nightmare on Elm Street series.[8] The Plaza routinely has screenings of other classic films, including Easy Rider, Back to the Future, Five Easy Pieces, as well as showcases of local independent films.
In 2010, the Plaza celebrated its 70th anniversary with screenings of 1939 films, including The Wizard of Oz and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington; Robert Osborn of Turner Classic Movies co-hosted the event.[9] The Plaza also hosted the Atlanta premiere for the film Scott Pilgrim vs. the World; Scott Pilgrim stars Michael Cera and Jason Schwartzman and director Edgar Wright were present at the premiere.[10] Similarly, the director of the emerging cult film The Room, Tommy Wiseau, made guest appearances at the theatre in 2010; The Room has been a monthly feature at the Plaza since early 2009.[4]
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