The Metro Theater on the Upper West Side, a long-closed New York movie landmark, is set to reopen. The theater's destiny shifted when the Upper West Side Cinema Center, a nonprofit organization, clinched a $6.9 million purchase last Friday, thanks in part to a $3.5 million grant from Governor Kathy Hochul's office. The revived Metro Theater will house five screens and include an arts education center and a cafe, announced Ira Deutchman, president of the nonprofit, at yesterday's news conference covered by Gothamist.
Having secured the property, now the real challenge begins: rounding up the necessary funding for renovation. While the Governor's grant, paired with a $500,000 contribution from the State Senate, brings them closer to their goal, an additional $15 million to $25 million is still required to fully restore the theater to its former glory. "This critical moment brings both opportunity and risk," Deutchman told Gothamist, emphasizing the need for community support to avoid another failed attempt at reviving the Broadway landmark.
The storied venue had played everything from pornographic flicks in the 1970s to art house masterpieces before bowing out of the business in 2005. The theater's declining fortunes were a reflection of a larger trend of closures across New York City. Devotees of the cinema have mourned notable losses like Sunshine Cinemas, which was razed in 2019, and the Concourse Plaza Multiplex Cinema in the Bronx.
The Metro's facade, a pink terra-cotta beacon since 1933 and named a landmark in 1989, survived the theater's various transitions, from screening "Ali" to hosting adult films. But inside, the Governor’s grant and donations, assisted by significant support from luminaries like Martin Scorsese and funds from Kate Capshaw and Steven Spielberg's Hearthland Foundation, must still convert an empty space into a bustling creative hub. Reflecting on the generous grant from Capshaw and Spielberg, "They support Ira's mission and look forward to seeing many films at the storied Metro Theater," a foundation spokesman said, as reported by The New York Times.
Drawing widespread support that includes members of Hollywood royalty, the project's prominent backers believe in seeing films as a collective experience that is irreplaceable. Aiming to restore the theater to its original art deco splendor, Deutchman is undeterred by the arduous fundraising ahead. "I'm just going to channel the fact that we managed to raise $7 million in less than five months," he confidently told The New York Times.
