In St. Louis Park, a Silver Screen Switcheroo
The Showplace Icon Theatre at the Shops at West End is changing hands. It’s emblematic of a wider shift in the movie theater business.
By Dan Niepow
July 03, 2024
It’s gotten much harder to run a movie theater these days. Especially if you’re a small, family-owned operator.
For those paying close attention to the industry, the recent ownership change at the Showplace Icon Theatre & Kitchen doesn’t really come as a surprise. Late last week, Milwaukee-based Marcus Corp. – the fourth largest theater chain in the nation – announced that it’s taking over the Showplace Icon in St. Louis Park’s Shops at West End.
The place formally closed on June 30, but Marcus is aiming for a quick turnaround and plans to reopen July 8.
Mark Gramz, president of Marcus Theatres, said his company is working with Hempel Real Estate Group – which bought Shops at West End in late 2022 – on a “smooth transition.”
“That’s a rapid transition between operators,” Gramz said in a phone interview with TCB. During the brief closure, Gramz said that Marcus has been busy updating signage and preparing to roll out several promotional programs, such as its daily $7 matinees for seniors and children.
Gramz said his team was aware that Chicago-based Kerasotes Theatres – which operates just four Showplace Icon theaters throughout the U.S. – had been struggling financially, “as we all kind of have been.” Kerasotes, which sold off a big part of its business to AMC more than a decade ago, is now closing all four of its remaining theaters, film industry news site IndieWire reported this week.
“It’s been a struggle for everyone,” Gramz said.
But the St. Louis Park theater also marked a new opportunity for Marcus. The company operates seven theaters in total in Minnesota, and only three are in the Twin Cities metro. Those locations are all in farther-flung suburbs: Rosemount, Shakopee, and Oakdale.
“From a geographical point of view, we’ve been east and south, and now we’re closer to Minneapolis on the west side,” Gramz said. “We’re excited to be there.”
In terms of size, Kerasotes and Marcus are markedly different companies. Marcus is publicly traded, and, per its 2023 annual report, the company operated 79 theaters across the country at the end of last year. Marcus Corp. also runs a separate hotel business.
Eric Wold, a San Francisco-based senior analyst at B. Riley Securities who monitors the movie theater business, said that Kerasotes’ challenges are “not unique.” He pointed to the recent sale of the Alamo Drafthouse chain to Sony Pictures.
Many smaller, family-run theater chains already struggled a lot during pandemic, he noted. Pandemic-related assistance, meanwhile, has run out. Then, theater operators were hit with a “double whammy:” the Hollywood writers’ and actors’ strikes last year, which significantly cut down on the number of new titles to show.
Wold said he wouldn’t be surprised if more smaller operators get scooped up by larger, publicly traded companies in the future. AMC has done several already, he noted.
There’s evidently still value left in movie theaters in shopping malls, especially for unique properties like Showplace Icon. When the Shops at West End opened in 2009, the Showplace Icon Theatre “was one of the very earliest bar/movie theater renovations,” Mpls.St.Paul Magazine’s Stephanie March noted last week.
Wold said that in these cases, “landlords don’t have a lot of options.”
“We’re out of the time period where you’ve got big-box retailers at shopping malls,” he said. “If a movie theater closes, there’s really not much you can put in its place, so your best option is to try to renegotiate a lease with someone else who wants to take it over.”
While it’s been a struggle for small movie theaters, it hasn’t exactly been smooth sailing for the big dogs, either. For its part, Marcus reported a $12 million loss in 2022, though it did net a profit in the following year. Wold said that Marcus’s movie theater business is still well below pre-pandemic levels, though its hotel arm has improved considerably.
Much like patrons of the performing arts, many movie theatergoers simply fell out of the habit over the pandemic.
The Fourth of July weekend, meanwhile, is generally seen as a big moneymaker for movie theaters, which makes the timing of Kerasotes’ exit puzzling. But it’s possible the company’s lease expired, and it didn’t really have a choice.
Industry wide, Wold doesn’t expect box office revenues to begin growing again until the fourth quarter of the year and into 2025. “It’s tough for these smaller theater chains to push through until that point, especially if they’re built for a much larger box office in the past,” he said.
Please update, rename theatre to Mann Edina 4 and total seats 376 due to installation of heated recliners by Mann Theatres in 2021, newspaper article in the photos section Mann Theatre reopened the theatre on September 30, 2022
Inside the Revamped Edina Theatre
The 50th & France landmark reopens with new owners and nods to the past.
by Cynthia Maya CultureOctober 1, 2022
Nearly three years after shutting down at the onset of the pandemic, the historic Edina Theatre reopened Friday under new local ownership. Mann Theaters is focused on the experience of movie going, which you can’t get while streaming from home, like heated seats and a bar designed to replicate Stanley Kubrick’s 1980 horror classic, The Shining.
The almost 90-year old theater boasts renovations throughout, including a forthcoming performance stage, updated screens and sound system, and new heated reclining seats.
Mann Theaters president Steve Mann, who actually owned the Edina Theatre once before for a short stint in the 1970s, gave credit to his children Michelle and Michael, who now run the business. “They’re responsible for all these remarkable ideas,” he said at a private grand opening party on Thursday.
Along with nods to old Hollywood like the elegant lobby chandelier, and historic photos including one of the 1981 storm that took out the iconic Edina marquee, the theater has been updated for the 21st Century with automated ticket kiosks and self-serve concessions. (There’s still an employee-staffed box office, for those who prefer to buy tickets the old fashioned way.) New concession items include pizza, chicken nuggets, and milk shakes.
Upstairs, visitors enter a whole new cinematic dimension in the Gold Room Bar, almost an exact replica of the Gold Ballroom from The Shining. The idea came to co-owner Michelle Mann when she and her brother toured the theater a year and a half ago. “Because of the way [the space] is structured, The Shining just came into our head, so that’s where it started,” Michelle Mann says. “We were like, ‘Guess what, Dad?’ We want to do this exactly like The Shining.’ He thought we were crazy but we said, ‘trust us.’” The result is an immersive experience that feels like stepping right into a movie scene—from the subtly chilling bathrooms, the REDRUM door, the hotel lobby scene and creepy twins looking over your shoulder as you enjoy a cocktail.
As an homage to the decoration, the theater is showing The Shining for its opening weekend along with three other movies; The Good House, Don’t Worry Darling, and Bros. Long known for indie films, the Edina will now show a mix of arthouse movies and Hollywood blockbusters.
Sitting in the heart of the 50th & France district neighboring businesses anticipate an uptick in foot traffic. “It’ll make us busier for sure. I think it’ll bring more people to the neighborhood,” says Vanessa Wheeler, the general manager at Pajarito restaurant across the street from the theater. Right next door to the theater, Bluebird Boutique co-owner Allison Mowery says she can’t wait to smell the popcorn again. “We’re thrilled to see our neighbor reopen, and so excited about the variety of movies they’ll be showing now!”
With a nod to the neighborhood, the opening event featured refreshments from surrounding businesses, including Mr. Paul’s Supper Club. Executive chef and owner Tommy Begnaud says, “We absolutely believe the theater will benefit Mr. Paul’s and all the restaurants and shops in the 50th & France district. There’s a lot of energy here, and having a theater experience just gives people one more reason to come and stay a while.”
The new stage for live performances is expected to draw small theater groups, comedians, and musical acts.
“We wanted to make it a destination” Michelle Mann says. “A place you’re not going to forget when you come in.”
Please update, rename theatre to Emagine Rogers and total screens is 14, downsize for Krazy Darts and Entertainment Center. (Also, uploaded the Grand Opening ad for this location in the Photos section.)
Please update, total seats 2,651
Seating Capcity:
Theatre 1 412 Big Screen Entertainment
Theatre 2 382 Big Screen Entertainment
Theatre 3 132
Theatre 4 115
Theatre 5 279
Theatre 6 107
Theatre 7 135
Theatre 8 148
Theatre 9 211
Theatre 10 129
Theatre 11 112
Theatre 12 170
Theatre 13 138
Theatre 14 151
Note: Big Screen Entertainment is basically ICON X, Marcus hasn’t rebranded it SuperScreen as of today.
In St. Louis Park, a Silver Screen Switcheroo The Showplace Icon Theatre at the Shops at West End is changing hands. It’s emblematic of a wider shift in the movie theater business. By Dan Niepow July 03, 2024 It’s gotten much harder to run a movie theater these days. Especially if you’re a small, family-owned operator.
For those paying close attention to the industry, the recent ownership change at the Showplace Icon Theatre & Kitchen doesn’t really come as a surprise. Late last week, Milwaukee-based Marcus Corp. – the fourth largest theater chain in the nation – announced that it’s taking over the Showplace Icon in St. Louis Park’s Shops at West End.
The place formally closed on June 30, but Marcus is aiming for a quick turnaround and plans to reopen July 8.
Mark Gramz, president of Marcus Theatres, said his company is working with Hempel Real Estate Group – which bought Shops at West End in late 2022 – on a “smooth transition.”
“That’s a rapid transition between operators,” Gramz said in a phone interview with TCB. During the brief closure, Gramz said that Marcus has been busy updating signage and preparing to roll out several promotional programs, such as its daily $7 matinees for seniors and children.
Gramz said his team was aware that Chicago-based Kerasotes Theatres – which operates just four Showplace Icon theaters throughout the U.S. – had been struggling financially, “as we all kind of have been.” Kerasotes, which sold off a big part of its business to AMC more than a decade ago, is now closing all four of its remaining theaters, film industry news site IndieWire reported this week.
“It’s been a struggle for everyone,” Gramz said.
But the St. Louis Park theater also marked a new opportunity for Marcus. The company operates seven theaters in total in Minnesota, and only three are in the Twin Cities metro. Those locations are all in farther-flung suburbs: Rosemount, Shakopee, and Oakdale.
“From a geographical point of view, we’ve been east and south, and now we’re closer to Minneapolis on the west side,” Gramz said. “We’re excited to be there.”
In terms of size, Kerasotes and Marcus are markedly different companies. Marcus is publicly traded, and, per its 2023 annual report, the company operated 79 theaters across the country at the end of last year. Marcus Corp. also runs a separate hotel business.
Eric Wold, a San Francisco-based senior analyst at B. Riley Securities who monitors the movie theater business, said that Kerasotes’ challenges are “not unique.” He pointed to the recent sale of the Alamo Drafthouse chain to Sony Pictures.
Many smaller, family-run theater chains already struggled a lot during pandemic, he noted. Pandemic-related assistance, meanwhile, has run out. Then, theater operators were hit with a “double whammy:” the Hollywood writers’ and actors’ strikes last year, which significantly cut down on the number of new titles to show.
Wold said he wouldn’t be surprised if more smaller operators get scooped up by larger, publicly traded companies in the future. AMC has done several already, he noted.
There’s evidently still value left in movie theaters in shopping malls, especially for unique properties like Showplace Icon. When the Shops at West End opened in 2009, the Showplace Icon Theatre “was one of the very earliest bar/movie theater renovations,” Mpls.St.Paul Magazine’s Stephanie March noted last week.
Wold said that in these cases, “landlords don’t have a lot of options.”
“We’re out of the time period where you’ve got big-box retailers at shopping malls,” he said. “If a movie theater closes, there’s really not much you can put in its place, so your best option is to try to renegotiate a lease with someone else who wants to take it over.”
While it’s been a struggle for small movie theaters, it hasn’t exactly been smooth sailing for the big dogs, either. For its part, Marcus reported a $12 million loss in 2022, though it did net a profit in the following year. Wold said that Marcus’s movie theater business is still well below pre-pandemic levels, though its hotel arm has improved considerably.
Much like patrons of the performing arts, many movie theatergoers simply fell out of the habit over the pandemic.
The Fourth of July weekend, meanwhile, is generally seen as a big moneymaker for movie theaters, which makes the timing of Kerasotes’ exit puzzling. But it’s possible the company’s lease expired, and it didn’t really have a choice.
Industry wide, Wold doesn’t expect box office revenues to begin growing again until the fourth quarter of the year and into 2025. “It’s tough for these smaller theater chains to push through until that point, especially if they’re built for a much larger box office in the past,” he said.
Please rename theatre to Mann Plymouth Grand 15 and total seats 1,421. 3 additional screens opened on November 28, 2014
Seating Capacity:
Theatre 1 89
Theatre 2 and 3 65
Theatre 4 152
Theatre 5 63
Theatre 6 43
Theatre 7 48
Theatre 8 101
Theatre 9 61
Theatre 10 135
Theatre 11 75
Theatre 12 69
Theatre 13 130
Theatre 14 227 XDX/Dolby Atmos
Theatre 15 88
Please update, rename theatre to Mann Edina 4 and total seats 376 due to installation of heated recliners by Mann Theatres in 2021, newspaper article in the photos section Mann Theatre reopened the theatre on September 30, 2022
Theatre 1 88
Theatre 2 105
Theatre 3 76
Theatre 4 107
Inside the Revamped Edina Theatre The 50th & France landmark reopens with new owners and nods to the past.
by Cynthia Maya CultureOctober 1, 2022
Nearly three years after shutting down at the onset of the pandemic, the historic Edina Theatre reopened Friday under new local ownership. Mann Theaters is focused on the experience of movie going, which you can’t get while streaming from home, like heated seats and a bar designed to replicate Stanley Kubrick’s 1980 horror classic, The Shining.
The almost 90-year old theater boasts renovations throughout, including a forthcoming performance stage, updated screens and sound system, and new heated reclining seats.
Mann Theaters president Steve Mann, who actually owned the Edina Theatre once before for a short stint in the 1970s, gave credit to his children Michelle and Michael, who now run the business. “They’re responsible for all these remarkable ideas,” he said at a private grand opening party on Thursday.
Along with nods to old Hollywood like the elegant lobby chandelier, and historic photos including one of the 1981 storm that took out the iconic Edina marquee, the theater has been updated for the 21st Century with automated ticket kiosks and self-serve concessions. (There’s still an employee-staffed box office, for those who prefer to buy tickets the old fashioned way.) New concession items include pizza, chicken nuggets, and milk shakes.
Upstairs, visitors enter a whole new cinematic dimension in the Gold Room Bar, almost an exact replica of the Gold Ballroom from The Shining. The idea came to co-owner Michelle Mann when she and her brother toured the theater a year and a half ago. “Because of the way [the space] is structured, The Shining just came into our head, so that’s where it started,” Michelle Mann says. “We were like, ‘Guess what, Dad?’ We want to do this exactly like The Shining.’ He thought we were crazy but we said, ‘trust us.’” The result is an immersive experience that feels like stepping right into a movie scene—from the subtly chilling bathrooms, the REDRUM door, the hotel lobby scene and creepy twins looking over your shoulder as you enjoy a cocktail.
As an homage to the decoration, the theater is showing The Shining for its opening weekend along with three other movies; The Good House, Don’t Worry Darling, and Bros. Long known for indie films, the Edina will now show a mix of arthouse movies and Hollywood blockbusters.
Sitting in the heart of the 50th & France district neighboring businesses anticipate an uptick in foot traffic. “It’ll make us busier for sure. I think it’ll bring more people to the neighborhood,” says Vanessa Wheeler, the general manager at Pajarito restaurant across the street from the theater. Right next door to the theater, Bluebird Boutique co-owner Allison Mowery says she can’t wait to smell the popcorn again. “We’re thrilled to see our neighbor reopen, and so excited about the variety of movies they’ll be showing now!”
With a nod to the neighborhood, the opening event featured refreshments from surrounding businesses, including Mr. Paul’s Supper Club. Executive chef and owner Tommy Begnaud says, “We absolutely believe the theater will benefit Mr. Paul’s and all the restaurants and shops in the 50th & France district. There’s a lot of energy here, and having a theater experience just gives people one more reason to come and stay a while.”
The new stage for live performances is expected to draw small theater groups, comedians, and musical acts.
“We wanted to make it a destination” Michelle Mann says. “A place you’re not going to forget when you come in.”
Please update, rename theatre to Mann Champlin 14 as per website and total seats 1,201
Seating Capacity:
Theatre 1 83
Theatre 2 54
Theatre 3 56
Theatre 4 69
Theatre 5 153
Theatre 6 71
Theatre 7 124
Theatre 8 124
Theatre 9 71
Theatre 10 188 XDX/Dolby Atmos
Theatre 11 65
Theatre 12 56
Theatre 13 55
Theatre 14 68
Please update, rename theatre to Emagine Willow Creek and total seats 1,038.
Theatre opened at 12 screens on May 16, 2003, Grand Opening ad in the photos section
Seating Capacity:
Theatre 1, 2, 11 and 12 60
Theatre 3 81
Theatre 4 and 5 138 EMX/Atmos
Theatre 6 63
Theatre 7 and 10 106
Theatre 8 and 9 83
Theatre #10 is 70MM DTS equipped
Please update, rename theatre to Emagine Rogers and total screens is 14, downsize for Krazy Darts and Entertainment Center. (Also, uploaded the Grand Opening ad for this location in the Photos section.)
Total Seats: 1,513
Seating Capacity:
Theatre 1, 6 and 14 139
Theatre 2, 4, 5, 12 and 13 70
Theatre 3, 7 and 8 96
Theate 9 275 Super EMX
Theate 10 59
Theatre 11 123
Please update, total seats 2,133
Seating Capacity:
Theatre 1, 2, 3 and 4 80
Theatre 5 228
Theatre 6 212 Dolby Cinema at AMC
Theatre 7 256 IMAX with Laser
Theatre 8 223
Theatre 9 127
Theatre 10 and 11 142
Theatre 12 128
Theatre 13, 14, 15 and 16 76
Please rename theatre to Cinemark Carson XD and ScreenX as per Cinemark website
Please update, closed according to google
Please add website https://www.movieshowtime.net/ridge
Please fix website to https://www.navymwrpensacola.com/programs/f2b48844-378e-462c-8062-6c45e445e4ac
Please add website https://marathoncinema.com/
Please reanme theatre to Regal UA Cinema 90 as per website
Please update, theatre name is GTC Beacon Brooksville Cinemas and it’s 12 screens and total seats 2116
Please rename theatre to AMC Boulevard 10 as per AMC Website, no longer considered Classic
Please rename theatre to Cinemark Tinseltown West Monroe 17
Please update closed
Please rename theatre to Cinemark Shreveport South Tinseltown and XD
Please add https://www.facebook.com/p/Rangra-Theater-100057269568945/, the website dosen’t exist
Please rename theatre to Icon Cinema San Angelo as per website
Please update, closed
Please update temporarily closed as per facebook page, see photo in the photos ection