On opening night, the lines weren’t long and the theaters weren’t crowded, but Dougherty was so happy to see people coming through the door. Gorlick, 75, will continue on with the theater as a paid consultant, easing the transition to the new owners and helping out with marketing films. Standing in the foyer, looking happy and rested, Gorlick talked about the change. That will include family movies, music and extreme sports films and classic film series. The new owners plan to expand the programming beyond what it had been - mostly indie and art films.

The theater looks great, got some good films coming and I think the people will have a good time here.”Īrnold Gorlick opened the Madison Art Cinemas in 1999 and worked hard to curate foreign and domestic movies. “Didn’t last long.”Īll joking, aside, he added, “It’s all great. “Finally, we’re going to be open one day and get to close again,” said Blank, laughing, as he referred to the snow storm gathering strength outside the theater. 28, on the eve of a monster snowstorm, and movie goers were thrilled to patronize the downtown theater. This military-grade technology disinfects the air and kills SARS and COVID in the air, according to co-owner Harold Blank.ĭougherty and Blank, owners of Mystic Luxury Cinemas, bought the Madison Arts Cinema, which had been shuttered since March 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. To keep patrons as safe as possible, CIMR technology has been installed in the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system. “We’re fully vaccinated, we’re boosted, masked,” said Jennifer Blackwell, clutching a large popcorn. Guilford resident Frank Blackwell, holding a soda and heading in to watch “Nightmare Alley: Visions in Darkness and Light” with his wife, Jennifer Blackwell, was excited to be back at the cinema. “My partner and I own the seats, the screen, projector, the popcorn machine, the landlord owns the building - the theater belongs to the community,” he said.

“Today we give it back to the community,” said co-owner Bill Dougherty, standing in the foyer.

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