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We love theaters that reflect a great passion for the movies, as well as a great understanding of the movie-loving community in which they are located. The Prospector Theater in Ridgefield, Connecticut, certainly fills the bill on both counts.
The town of Ridgefield is the home of about 25,000 people, located nine miles south of Danbury in the western part of a most beautiful state. The Ridgefield Playhouse, built in 1939, served as a single-screen movie theater for the community for 40 years before closing, then became a bank for another 40 years before closing again. The building was targeted for demolition when it caught the attention of local resident Valerie Jensen. She had been interested in improving the lives of people with disabilities her entire life; her sister, Hope, was born with Down Syndrome, which heightened that sensitivity. And Valerie had a great idea.
The Prospector Theater now "pairs a first-run, commercial movie theater with the mission of training and employing adults with disabilities," as explained at the theater's website. The premium, first-run, four-screen theater shows all the latest movies, along with specialty programming -- theme nights, classics, sing-alongs -- while providing educational and employment opportunities to adults with developmental disabilities.
The theater, which also features a gourmet coffee shop, bar, and restaurant, opened last November, and has received good notices in the local and national press, as in the video below from NBC News. As reporter Harry Smith asks, "Could this work in your town?"
http://www.movies.com/movie-news/how-movie-theater-connecticut-sets-example-for-nation/17989
The town of Ridgefield is the home of about 25,000 people, located nine miles south of Danbury in the western part of a most beautiful state. The Ridgefield Playhouse, built in 1939, served as a single-screen movie theater for the community for 40 years before closing, then became a bank for another 40 years before closing again. The building was targeted for demolition when it caught the attention of local resident Valerie Jensen. She had been interested in improving the lives of people with disabilities her entire life; her sister, Hope, was born with Down Syndrome, which heightened that sensitivity. And Valerie had a great idea.
The Prospector Theater now "pairs a first-run, commercial movie theater with the mission of training and employing adults with disabilities," as explained at the theater's website. The premium, first-run, four-screen theater shows all the latest movies, along with specialty programming -- theme nights, classics, sing-alongs -- while providing educational and employment opportunities to adults with developmental disabilities.
The theater, which also features a gourmet coffee shop, bar, and restaurant, opened last November, and has received good notices in the local and national press, as in the video below from NBC News. As reporter Harry Smith asks, "Could this work in your town?"
http://www.movies.com/movie-news/how-movie-theater-connecticut-sets-example-for-nation/17989
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