Texans love their movies whether it be a first run blockbuster or small independent film (especially if they are Texas films!), But few movie houses in the Lone Star State have taken that passion and turned movie viewing into an interactive experience the way Alamo Drafthouse Cinema has done. A night at the movies here is no passive experience. it's an entertainment event.
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Viewing "Planet of the Apes" on location
Lake Powell, AZ.
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 While their schedule is full year round, summer film events are particularly fun. But their most interesting and unique venue is the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema Rolling Road Show, which takes the magic of interactive cinema across the nation. Chances are you probably haven't had the experience of a "drive-in" theater, a time in the not-so-distant-past when families and young people could load the car with blankets, pillows, lawn chairs, and other goodies and pull into the "drive-in" -- along with the rest of the community. Folks would meet at the snack bar and chat, teenagers would hop from car to car buzzing about who was out with whom, and young children would play in the grassy knolls on the side of the parking area. The "drive-in" experience wasn't just about the film, it was a social community event. In our high tech entertainment world of high-definition screens and surround sound one wonders why anybody would even be interested in such an arcaine theater experience. But it is exactly that social aspect that Alamo Drafthouse Cinema has brought back to their movie entertainment events.
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"Ratatouille" chefs prepare french
pasteries for film viewing.
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In the corporate run world of movie entertainment it is rare to find an independent theater that can survive. But this kind of independent spirit has always thrived in Austin. The Alamo Drafthouse Cinema is Austin's only independently owned and operated movie theater. While the floor design is laid out like most traditional theaters, there is one exception -- every other row is removed and replaced with long narrow tables for food and drinks, which are offered during the movie experience. The food and drinks are generally themed with the evenings entertainment, For example, in recent years Executive Chef Thomas Hanawa prepared cooked livers and tongues for the premier of "Shaun of the Dead"; created homemade Asian foods for Hong Kong Sundays, and made a four course southern style box lunch for "The General". But there are additional items to order from the menu if the "special" doesn't appeal to you. Also, there is always pre-movie entertainment, a perfect time or dine, and their unique ordering system is unobtrusive.
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Luche Libre Mexican Wrestlers perform before "Nacho Libre" opening. Many audience members came dressed as wrestlers.
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While first run movies are found every week at their three other and more commercial Austin locations, it is the old classics and new independent films that come to lifeon the silver screen of the Drafthouse theatre offering a broader experience for the public. With events like Music Mondays, Weird Wednesdays, and Terror Thursdays, Sing-a-longs, and Food and Film events, there is never a dull night at this theater.
One favorite event now in it's eighth year is the "Master Pancake" evening where the viewing of bad movies is paired with live comedy performed by professional stand up comedians, national and local personalities and a roster of Austin comedians.
Through the years the sucess of their Austin operations has allowed them to expand their theaters to Houston, San Antonio and the Rio Grande Valley. And since not everyone is fortunate enough to live in Austin or in other communities where patrons can enjoy their Drafthouse Cinema experience, the owners have given birth to a brilliant idea..."The Rolling Roadshow".
Rolling Roadshow is not simply a series of outdoor movie screenings. The tour is the culmination of every experience they creat at the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema: fantastic Cinema happenings, with complete movie immersion, celebrity guests, wacky tie-ins, contests, scavenger hunts and the thrill of watching favorite movies in the exact locations in which they were filmed.
In years past these showings included viewing the Field of Dreams in Iowa with Kevin Costner live in person, a screening at Devil's Tower in Wyoming where one of the most memorable scenes in Close Encounters took place and Alcatraz Island for a screening of Escape From Alcatrez. This season offers some unique cinema experiences including The Lost Boys screening on the carnival midway in Santa Cruz, Ca., classic North by Northwest at Mt. Rushmore, and much more.
So clean out the car, pack your lawn chairs, blankets and grab your friends and head out to a unique cinema experience from the Austin Drafthouse Cinema's Rolling Road Show, coming to a city or the countryside near you soon.
2007 Rolling Road Show Tour Dates:
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Rio Grande Valley
