TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA — The Carlton Cinemas is set to close on December 6 due to decline in business. Opened back in 1981 as part of Garth Drabinsky and Nat Taylor’s original Cineplex chain. In recent years, the cinema have been declining in business due to the public’s movie going habits.

More details in the Globe and Mail.

STONINGTON, CT — William and Casey Cyr Gash are about to open the Mystic Independent Theater. They hope to feature films that did not make the cut at various film festivals as well as live events.

The intimate 46-seat theater, which had been home to the now-defunct Stonington Film Society, has been renovated and will not only show independent films but host music and drama presentations, family celebrations, birthday parties, business meetings and other events.

It is all part of the couple’s diversified plan to ensure the economic success of the theater, which features tiered seats, a raised stage, adjustable lighting and top-quality video and sound systems.

Read more in the California Chronicle.

CHATTANOOGA, TN — The new Carmike Majestic 12 near this city’s revitalized riverfront, boasts the amenties characteristic of a number new theaters - enhanced food selection, a VP viewing room, and plush seating. In addition, the theater used recycled materials in its construction, and uses electricity from solar panels, and collected rainwater in its plumbing and in landscaping maintenance. This theater is a replacement for the Carmike’s Bijou Cinema 7 which has closed.

Carmike Cinemas Inc. and the RiverCity Co. went beyond creature comforts and high-tech gadgetry to build and open a theater that they claim is an environmental first. The Columbus, Ga.-based theater company’s Majestic 12 opened last weekend, just a short walk from Chattanooga’s redeveloped riverfront and the Bijou 7 it is replacing.

U.S. Green Building Council spokeswoman Ashley Katz said Carmike has applied for LEED certification for the 70,000-square-foot building.

Read more in this item from the Associated Press.

GLENWOOD SPRINGS, CO — About 18 months ago, Carmike closed its triplex at the Glenwood Mall and ever since, the center’s management has been looking for a new operator. Although some interest was expressed, possible takers wanted to expand the theater’s number of screens which would take time; the mall’s managers wanted the theater open for the holiday shopping season. They have decided to run it themselves calling it now the Movies at the Mall.

Like Hollywood movie heroes, owners of the Glenwood Springs Mall are bucking the national chains this time and running the theater themselves. If they remodel it, owners figure, they will come.

“It was an effort, and it will be an effort that really pays off,” said mall general manager Sonia Davis, who headed up the effort to reopen the theater.

Read the whole story in the Aspen Daily.

SALEM, OR — The former Regal Movieland 7 has been reborn as the Cinebarre. In addition to cocktail service and expanded menu offerings, the theater has a rentable VIP viewing space.

Nearly 400 people attended the theater’s grand opening event Thursday night, Karol said.

The theater is the former Regal Cinemas’ Movieland 7. Cinebarre offers first-run movies and caters to adults — minors younger than 18 will be seated in the theater only if accompanied by a parent or guardian. Children younger than 6 are only allowed into the theater on its designated “scream day,” which is the first showing every Tuesday.

Read more in the Statesman Journal.

PITTSFIELD, MA — The new Beacon Cinema opening on November 20 combines elements of the old and new. Housed within the 91-year-old Kinnell-Kresge building, designers have restored original ceilings and woodwork. The six-screen theater itself is technologically up-to-date with stadium seating and automated digital projection. The theater will serve beer and wine, in addition to typical movie concession fare.

The Eagle got a sneak peak of the state-of-the-art movie theater on Friday afternoon, however, and from the building’s original tin ceilings and woodwork to its state-of-the-art Dolby digital sound system, the public is in for an architectural and theatrical experience that’s sure to stimulate the senses.

The behind-the-scenes look included a tour of the six-screen, 850-seat cinema, which evokes memories of an old neighborhood picture house — albeit with modern upgrades such as stadium seating, which is designed give moviegoers a comfortable viewing experience, and a bar serving wine and beer.

Read more in the Berkshire Eagle.

CHAPEL HILL, NC — After closing this past summer, the Varsity Theatre, a historic landmark in Downtown Chapel Hill on East Franklin Street for more than 80 years is scheduled to reopen on November 9, 2009 under new management. The theatre, which in the past showcased foreign and independent films will present mainstream films as well as classic films at reduced prices.

Today, new owners will announce their plans for renovation, which include an upgraded lobby and concession area and a children’s birthday party room.

The owners declined requests for an interview until their announcement.

Former owner Bruce Stone, who operated the Varsity for nine years, said lowering prices didn’t work for him, and he doesn’t know how $3 movie tickets will work to sustain the new Varsity.

Read more of this article in the Daily Tarheel.

UPDATE: Now slated for November 29th reopening.

PITTSBURGH, PA — The number of screens it has had over the years expanded and contracted, but for over six decades, the Cheswick Theatre has been entertaining patrons in the Alle-Kiski Valley area. The owner is reluctant to close it, but economic realities have left him no choice.

"I didn’t want to close it, but there is such a thing that when it starts costing you money, you have no other alternative.”

The closing of the four-screen Cheswick Theatre along the north side of Pittsburgh Street comes two years after its sister building, which had two screens, closed.

It’s another step toward the end of an era in the Alle-Kiski Valley in which movie lovers flocked to downtown neighborhood theaters in New Kensington, Vandergrift, Cheswick and Tarentum.

Read more at Pittsburgh Live.

BONITA SPRINGS, FL — The Regal Stadium 12, which closed in June, will re-open in as the Prado Cinema Cafe. The twelve screens will remain; new amenities will include leather seats, a grill menu, beer and wine availability, and wait service. The Prado’s other tenants hope the theater’s re-opening will increase traffic at the distressed shopping plaza.

Four months after Regal Stadium 12 shuttered its doors in Bonita Springs, a new movie theater has announced plans for a return to the big screen in full Hollywood style, with more bells and more whistles.

Cinema Cafe is expected to open in February in The Prado at Spring Creek on U.S. 41, featuring 12 screens, leather seats, beer and wine service, a grill menu and waiter service.

“The Prado Cinema Cafe will bring a long overdue, upgraded cinema experience with value-added services to the Lee County area, but at affordable, everyday prices,” said Doug Olson, sales and leasing specialist for LandQwest Commercial, who secured the deal.

More detail in the Naples News.

KANSAS CITY, MO — When the former Crown Center 6 closed two years ago, the space occupied by four of its former screening rooms was converted into a live theater venue. The remaining two screens will be re-opening soon as the Screenland Crown Center. The cinema will operate from Thursday through Sunday most of the time and feature independent, foreign, and documentary films.

That programming should distinguish it from the more commercial fare shown at AMC’s Mainstreet in the nearby Power & Light District.

“Our intent was to find an operator who would fit more into our entertainment strategy, something outside first-run, big-studio pictures,” said Rick Brown of Crown Center Redevelopment.

More details at the Kansas City Star.