PORT TOWNSEND — The Rose Theatre, which has shown a movie every night for the past two decades, is going dark for five days beginning Sunday.
“I’ve never closed, not for 20 years,” said owner and operator Rocky Friedman.
“But I had to close down for this.”
He will install digital projection equipment, a project to bring the Rose into the 21st century and allow it to keep pace with the rest of the world, he said.
Friedman raised the $200,000 needed for the conversion, selling 70 bronze stars — in various sizes for various contributions from $500 to $5,000 — and 44 bronze plaques at $250 each, all of which will bear donors’ names and be displayed in the Rose’s lobby.
In addition to the digital conversion, the theater lobby will get a face-lift, including the posting of the bronze stars on a newly painted wall.
“This was really amazing,” Friedman said of the fundraising campaign.
“More than 500 people contributed to keep the Rose alive.”
The last analog shows will be Saturday night, and the theater will reopen digitally for the evening shows next Friday.
At that time, “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel,” which is now playing in the larger of the two auditoriums, will move to the Little Rose, while Ridley Scott’s “Prometheus,” shown in 3-D, will open in the large room.
Friedman said he didn’t have any intention of opening up the new screen with a blockbuster 3-D movie; it just turned out that way.
Some moviegoers are wary of 3-D, Friedman said, so he plans to present the matinees in 2-D and the evening show in 3-D.
The difference between the two formats is the strength of the projector’s bulb, which needs to be changed each time a switch is made.
Friedman said many moviegoers won’t be able to tell the difference between film and digital projection during the actual movie but will be able to discern an increased stability and clarity during the credits.
The projection process no longer requires giant reels.
Today’s movies are delivered to theaters on data drives.
The renovation and painting will take two days.
The digital equipment installation is scheduled to begin Tuesday night.
Friedman doesn’t think the installation will take three days but has built extra time into the process in case something goes wrong.
The digital capability will be in full swing for the theater’s 20th anniversary.
The first movie under Friedman’s management was shown July 11, 1992.
For showtimes and information, visit www.rosetheatre.com.
________
Jefferson County Reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
