[c_speed3108]

The Mayfair theatre is opening a second location with 3 screens in Orleans on December 2nd

http://www.yourottawaregion.com/news/article/1245214--mayfair-theatre-to-open-second-location-in-orleans

http://mayfairtheatre.ca/mayfair-news/second-mayfair-theatre-opens-in-orleans-dec-2/

[eternallyme]

I think the central part of Orleans has so much potential to become a massive office/commercial node. I would like to see a full/partial redevelopment of Place d'Orleans, perhaps with a shared ownership with Orleans Centre, and new stores/offices fronting St. Joseph.

[Acajack]

This is great news for Orleans! I can't believe there is going to be a cinema in Orleans with a (partial) repertory program!

[LeadingEdgeBoomer]

Even though I live in the East, I will not get to excited about this. These are the same guys that held fundraising events for FOl, at their original location, and helped cause the delay in getting Lansdowne rebuilt.(And wasting taxpayers money to conduct a defense} Not likely to get much support from me.

[Acajack]

Even though I live in the East, I will not get to excited about this. These are the same guys that held fundraising events for FOl, at their original location, and helped cause the delay in getting Lansdowne rebuilt.(And wasting taxpayers money to conduct a defense} Not likely to get much support from me.

I know, but you can't really blame them - I know I wouldn't want a multi-plex cinema going in just across the bridge from me if I owned a small theatre...

[LeadingEdgeBoomer]

I know, but you can't really blame them - I know I wouldn't want a multi-plex cinema going in just across the bridge from me if I owned a small theatre...

!--all business is a risk--they can not really be sure a bigger theater will not move in across the street in Orlenas a few years from now.

2--we all have our special interests and they often conflict---my desire is seeing LP redeveloped ASAP and it conflicts with the Mayfairs desire--so I did not like them supporting FOl, delaying things and forcing the city to spend tax dollars on legal fees. Therefore I will exercise the right not to support them. I have plenty of other options for my entertainment dollars, including lots of movie options.

3--The owners can not be too badly off if they have the wherewithall to swing a deal for a 3-screen complex---Yet they expressed distress over their one screen theater and helped delay LP and spend tax dollars on legal fees

4--they probably had this deal in the works while they were crying crocodile tears and helping delay LP. They will probably make more money with three screens than one. In fact they may end up with both theaters as it is not certain that the old one will fold as the empire theater and the mayfair cater to different niches of the movie market. All in all I have little sympathy for them.

Ps-I think the Glebe ad OOS BIAs have been wrong all along . The new Lansdowne will bring more people and business to everyone in the area. The Glebe even got a bonus as the City accelerated the reconstruction of bank st to get it done before Lansdowne . The BIAs in the other sections of Bank St had to put up with disruption for a lot longer than the Glebe did. The other sections of Bank st did not get such fancy street scaping (e.g. - interlock instead of concrete side walks). The Glebe BIA can thank the LP redevelopemnt deal for the city's desire to make the whole area a place people from afar will want to go to.

[adam-machiavelli]

LEB just doesn't like alt cinema. You're spitting in the wind.

[LeadingEdgeBoomer]

LEB just doesn't like alt cinema. You're spitting in the wind

I do.I will get my fill at the ByTowne. Although next week I will go and see Sarah's Key at the Rainbow

.As I wrote --there are other options---and I will take them rather than patronize FOL, who are still fighting the city in court over LP----the appeal hearing starts on Nov 28.

[adam-machiavelli]

If we boycotted every business or organization that did something once in the past that we kind of disagreed with, we'd never shop anywhere.

[LeadingEdgeBoomer]

If we boycotted every business or organization that did something once in the past that we kind of disagreed with, we'd never shop anywhere.

1) Some truth to this. However, we can pick and choose which business we will boycott and for how long. It depends on how strongly we feel on a given issue.

2) The Mayfair situation is not in the past, but the present. The funds raised at the Mayfair fundraisers is fueling the court case this year, and the appeal which is still ongoing. The delay in getting LP done is happening now because of this appeal. I choose to boycott a business that supported this appeal and that may help collect future funds for a further appeal. based on their actions this year.I do not wish to contribute to supporting FOL, directly or indirectly.

[LeadingEdgeBoomer]

An article on The Citizen web site says that Mayfair Orleans is in financial trouble. It may shut down as early as the end of this month.

[gjhall]

An article on The Citizen web site says that Mayfair Orleans is in financial trouble. It may shut down as early as the end of this month.

Perhaps the owner should refrain from punching patrons in the face.

[Acajack]

An article on The Citizen web site says that Mayfair Orleans is in financial trouble. It may shut down as early as the end of this month.

Having lived in Orleans for quite a few years and having many friends and family there, I hate to say it but it does not do much to dispel the perception that people there aren't interested in anything other than mainstream Hollywood blockbusters.

[adam-machiavelli]

Perhaps the owner should refrain from punching patrons in the face.

Evidence or it's a libel lawsuit for you, good sir/ma'am.

[orleans_man]

As a resident of Orleans I'm happy to have an alternative theatre.

They have done a real nice job with this updated theatre and it would be a shame to see it go. The facility itself is really quite nice and has the potential to serve as an anchor to a growing Orleans Town Centre.

I think that this part of Orleans has so much potential, but it has for a long time and we are still waiting for it to really take-off.

Maybe the coming hotel and potenial office tower will be the catalyst it needs...

[Acajack]

On Radio-Canada this morning there was a report about the cinema's imminent closure. They billed it as Orleans' francophone cinema, which it is isn't really (at least not exclusively - though it is about the only place in Orleans where you can see films in French).

They did man-on-the-street interviews in Orleans and the francophones they spoke to weren't even aware of the Mayfair's existence in the community.

I don't think things are boding well for this endeavour, unfortunately.

[teej1984]

Having lived in Orleans for quite a few years and having many friends and family there, I hate to say it but it does not do much to dispel the perception that people there aren't interested in anything other than mainstream Hollywood blockbusters.

Perhaps people in the suburbs aren't interested in anything but the blockbusters, but the Mayfair DT often has lines down Rideau St for people waiting to get in! The indie film is far from dead.. some may even say it's having a renaissance!

[Acajack]

Perhaps people in the suburbs aren't interested in anything but the blockbusters, but the Mayfair DT often has lines down Rideau St for people waiting to get in! The indie film is far from dead.. some may even say it's having a renaissance!

I think you mean the Bytowne, which is on Rideau. The downtown Mayfair is on Bank.

And no I do not think that this type of cinema is dead. My comment was more about the artistic pursuits and interests of people in Orleans than about the viability of repertory cinema.

[c_speed3108]

Having lived in the east end before there is room for this type of cinema, provided it is marketed right (the number of people that have never heard of this place is a bit alarming to me) and to the right type of people.

I think out in Orleans you need a much greater family focus - probably much less focus on artsy movie purist types. For instance the Rainbow at St. Laurent does a Moms and strollers day (or some name name to that effect). He definitely needs to ramp up the number of kids movies shown. Even his membership model is probably a fair bit different than people are used to.

The suburbs are definitely a very different market than downtown and you need to treat it as such.. Even in the retail world, you go out to for example grocery stores and you find them busy much earlier on say a Saturday morning, but not busy as late as the downtown ones are. The mall is full of families whereas a mall like Rideau tends to more full of young/university aged types, singles etc..

[Dundas]

Indie films??? When i check cinemaclock.com most of the movies playing at this theater are movies that just got taken down from the major other cinemas. Looks like a rainbow cinema. I dunno who would go there??

[Acajack]

Indie films??? When i check cinemaclock.com most of the movies playing at this theater are movies that just got taken down from the major other cinemas. Looks like a rainbow cinema. I dunno who would go there??

It may not be purely indie, but it is the best chance for non-Hollywood, non-blockbuster fare in Orleans.

[Acajack]

Having lived in the east end before there is room for this type of cinema, provided it is marketed right (the number of people that have never heard of this place is a bit alarming to me) and to the right type of people.

I think out in Orleans you need a much greater family focus - probably much less focus on artsy movie purist types. For instance the Rainbow at St. Laurent does a Moms and strollers day (or some name name to that effect). He definitely needs to ramp up the number of kids movies shown. Even his membership model is probably a fair bit different than people are used to.

The suburbs are definitely a very different market than downtown and you need to treat it as such.. Even in the retail world, you go out to for example grocery stores and you find them busy much earlier on say a Saturday morning, but not busy as late as the downtown ones are. The mall is full of families whereas a mall like Rideau tends to more full of young/university aged types, singles etc..

I bet that any cinema in Orleans that would show movies for young kids in French would probably make a killing. There is a huge untapped market for this there.

[LeadingEdgeBoomer]

Looks like the Mayfair on Bank Street is finished unless they can raise some money--and not due to the LPP or the Empire chain----but due to changing technology. Here is the explanation.


Projector falls silent at Mayfair
2

By Darren Brown,Ottawa Sun

First posted: Saturday, August 11, 2012 01:12 PM EDT | Updated: Saturday, August 11, 2012 03:39 PM EDT




It is a sound as synonymous with movie making as any but the whir of the projector at the Mayfair Theatre in Ottawa will soon fall silent.

As film distributors look to cut costs, they are looking to the future and digital technology.

“At the end of 2012, early 2013, 35mm film will pretty much be extinct in terms of distribution so the Mayfair Theatre, despite kicking and screaming film buffs have against it, us included, our hands are forced that the future is here,” says Mayfair Theatre co-owner, Josh Stafford.

For small movie houses like this one across the country, that poses a very expensive problem.

“We’re trying to raise a little over $50,000, and that’s a lot of money for anybody ... to buy this very high quality digital projector,” says Stafford.

While many large chains have already gone digital, the savings seems to be only for distributors.

To print an 80-minute feature film, it can cost $1,500 to $2,500 so making thousands of prints for a wide-release movie can cost millions of dollars.

In contrast, a feature-length movie can be stored on an off the shelf 300 GB hard drive for $150 and a broad release of 4,000 ‘digital prints’ might cost $600,000.

“This is our 80th anniversary coming up in December and although we get by there’s a lot of ‘for the love of the game’ so we don’t have tens of thousands of dollars in the bank.”

Throughout the year, the Mayfair is having special theme nights and asking patrons to put in a little extra over the price of admission, which goes towards the new projector’s purchase.

With most major theatres having already gone digital for blockbuster summers, many Mayfair patrons may not notice the change but for projectionist, Matthew Ramsden, the coming of a digital age is met with melancholy.

“It will be a really sad day. It’s not just a job for me. I’m kind of the last step in the film-making process.”

To Ramsden, each film reel has its own character.

“When we get a film back we know it’s one we’ve played already because everybody that plays a film, they put their own little mark on it; you make a splice and then you recognize it as your own.”

On this night he’s reacquainting himself with Alfred Hitchcock’s, The Birds, turning the theatre into a time machine, resplendent with faux balconies, stained glass, old movie posters and of course, the aroma of fresh popcorn as if it hasn’t aged a day.

But in the end there is no denying it, 35mm film at the Mayfair will soon spin off into the sunset.

darren.brown@sunmedia.ca

Maybe FOL can help them out by raising some money for them.,after all The Mayfair held fund raisers for FOL.

as posted in earlier articles there operation in Orleans is not doing well .

[JeffB]

Maybe FOL can help them out by raising some money for them.,after all The Mayfair held fund raisers for FOL.

You may or may not be saying that in jest, but this is the type of thing a group like FOL should be trying to help with. They have spent years trying to prevent the development, but now here is a prime opportunity for them to band together for a more positive cause. Granted, the Mayfair's audience is pretty niche - but there is an audience. The only reason I've ever gone was my wife and I waited too long to go to see "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" and it was no longer at the first-run theatres. But for that day I appreciated it being there.

And if the FOL really cares about protecting local business and helping them succeed, then they should contribute some money or some fundraising activity to try to help the Mayfair out. If they don't, can they really then say their plight wasn't just a NIMBY complaint?

[nredding]

The Mayfair theater has raised the money it needs for a digital projector.

http://www.indiegogo.com/mayfairdigital

[rocketphish]

The Mayfair theater has raised the money it needs for a digital projector.

http://www.indiegogo.com/mayfairdigital

And just to be clear, this projector is for the historic Bank St. Mayfair cinema location, not the Orleans one as the title of this thread might suggest.

[JeffB]

And just to be clear, this projector is for the historic Bank St. Mayfair cinema location, not the Orleans one as the title of this thread might suggest.

Either way, good for them.

[phil235]

Either way, good for them.

Glad to hear it. Love that theatre.

[nredding]

The Mayfair Theatre Orleans has closed. No reason given.

http://orleans.mayfairtheatre.ca/

[Acajack]

The Mayfair Theatre Orleans has closed. No reason given.

http://orleans.mayfairtheatre.ca/

Pretty much confirms what I said earlier on in the thread. People in Orleans are not really interested in non-mainstream cultural offerings. It's also the case for cuisine - look at how many non-chain restaurants you have there. Not too many have survived. Good luck anyway to the new Brasserie Ste-Marthe.

[Requin]

The Mayfair Theatre Orleans has closed. No reason given.


That sucks. So much for the membership I purchased last month!

[c_speed3108]

They had the owner on the news. He said the landlord shut him down. He owed about $200k in rent.

It takes a while to build up a following as it is a different market than the bank street one. He seemed to feel he had more or less built up that following to make it viable now, but had simply run out of time with the landlord to be profitable enough to get the back rent paid off.