Monarch Theatre makes its comeback with ‘Your Cinema Needs You’ premiere

“I’m almost certain that anyone who’s a movie fan is gonna find some aspect of this project fascinating because we’ve essentially tied the Monarch Theatre to 112 years of film history,” Fandrich said.

“So think of your favorite movie, it played in this building. So having people back in and connecting that to Medicine Hat’s history, I think is going to be a really fascinating event to have here.”

The documentary all started with one question, ‘is the Monarch the oldest cinema in Canada?’ For two years, filmmaker Fandrich poured over that question, discovering the history behind the building built in 1911.

“It kind of seemed like, well, ‘what if I make this movie, and the theater just closes, and no one can come here anymore?'” Fandrich said.

“I’m really happy that’s not the case, because this is kind of the best case scenario that the theatre has new owners, we’re going to have three nights of a premiere, people can come in and actually learn about this place in the exact theatre that it happened. It’s just a lot of things aligning.”

The film will premiere on Dec. 28, 29 and 30. Tickets will be on sale Thursday only on editingluke.com. Tickets will not be sold at the door.

The Monarch’s new owner, Monarch 1911 Society, are not sure when or what showings will take place following the documentary.

by Lisa Parent

Monarch Theatre makes its comeback with ‘Your Cinema Needs You’ premiere

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