[evoxed]

There's a theater one town over, population about half of that (edit: 1/3- it was 960 as of 2011). They've been doing pretty well, better than ten years ago even! Their prices are the same as every other theater (the next one being 45 minutes away), but now they have a gallery and cafe upstairs. Before any previews start, they play a slideshow of ads for local businesses. A subscription sounds nice, but I think the only way it could really work is if people actually want to be there, in which case all those other improvements become twice as helpful.

[barking]

That's great, being able to sit, chat and have a drink (maybe even eat!) beforehand turns a trip to the pictures into a perfect midweek night out.

[evoxed]

Exactly! I didn't even mention that Monday/Wednesday (can't remember which) is matinee price all night. It's really great for meeting up with friends or multiple families going to see big releases (like the Hobbit) together. And of course lastly there's the "screening studio", which is just one of the three screens that sometimes shows local/regional productions or hosts forums.

And yet another update: I'm thee right now, waiting for the Hobbit. Apparently they do 3d now, with all new projectors. They're doing even better than I thought...