College 9 Theatre Officially Reopens

Story posted March 30, 2021 in CommRadio, News by Gabrielle Teiner

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — College 9 Theatre has reopened for the second time since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The movie theater, located at 3101 Carnegie Drive, is open with limited hours.

The theater will be open beginning at 4 p.m. Fridays through Sundays and 6:30 p.m. on Tuesdays. Ticket prices on Tuesdays are reduced to $5.50.

All safety measures previously in place will remain, such as mandatory masking, 6-foot distancing, 50% capacity and plexiglass between employees and customers. Enhanced and frequent cleaning procedures have been adopted according to the regional manager Anthony Smith.

Despite College 9 reopening, students are fickle about whether or not they would consider going to see a movie in person.

“I would probably not go, actually; I’m less likely to go if I have to wear a mask the whole time,” said Sabrina Hayek, a sophomore psychology of business major.

On the flip side, Jenna Dilorenzo, a sophomore intending to major in finance, says she definitely will be going to the theater, even with COVID restrictions.

“I do love going to the movies, and it's something I would like to do again, so I’ll probably be back if they reopen,” Dilorenzo said.

While the theaters are open, and new movies are being released, streaming services like Netflix and Hulu stand in the way of Dilorenzo visiting the theaters again.

“Having the option to use streaming services, it’s definitely going to take more of a push for me to immediately go back into theaters,” Dilorenzo said.

The College 9 Theatre underwent remodeling right before the pandemic, so it now includes new seating in each of the auditoriums and recliner seating in the four largest theaters.

The College 9 Theatre is the first of two local theaters to reopen. The UEC 12 Theatre is still closed as of now but is planning to reopen in the spring.

Another reason that just one of the theaters is opening at first, Smith said, is that they are still waiting to receive funds designated for theaters as part of the federal COVID-19 relief package passed in December.

 

Gabrielle Teiner is a sophomore majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact her, email gmt5216@psu.edu.

About the Contributors

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Gabrielle Teiner

Senior / Broadcast Journalism Major

Gabrielle Teiner is a fourth-year student from Long Island, New York, majoring in broadcast journalism at Penn State. She is a member of the CommRadio news department and can be heard on the air every Wednesday. She also serves as the Entertainment anchor for Penn State Network News every Monday. She also anchors segments on the Nittany Lion Red Carpet News show. This past summer she was a writing intern for uInterview, writing over 140 stories during her time there. She is currently a member of Centre County Report. If you’d like to contact her, email her at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).