The Perot Theatre hasn't hosted a movie screening in decades, but that will change three days before Christmas.
The City of Texarkana, Texas, and the Texarkana Regional Arts and Humanities Council will partner to present a day of movies, food trucks, vendors, crafts and more on Saturday, Dec. 22. Cleaning an old screen and renting the right projector are just some of the hurdles to overcome to prepare for this momentous occasion.
On tap for this day, billed as Perot Holiday Traditions, is a Perot movie lineup of "The Polar Express" (10:30 a.m.), "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" (1 p.m.), "Elf" (1:30 p.m.) and "It's a Wonderful Life" (7 p.m.). Out on Main Street is where vendors will be situated, while across the street at Arts on Main children's crafts will be available for ticket holders.
After "Polar Express," Santa Claus will visit with everyone and food trucks will open. Crafts are geared toward the next movie, the classic, 26-minute version of the "Grinch." "Elf" follows. Following a break, it's time for the film nightcap.
"We will reopen at about 6:30 p.m. for the holiday classic 'It's a Wonderful Life' that will start at 7 p.m.," said Tiffani Whitehead, marketing coordinator for TRAHC. With a lineup like this, the whole family can find something to enjoy.
"And have a full day event, not just coming to watch a movie. There's going to be a lot going on on the streets," Whitehead said, then making a bold proclamation. "It is a 100 percent chance of snow," she said.
Therefore, movies, food and refreshments, crafts and snow are all promised. Decades ago, the Perot hosted movies as the Paramount. It's been quite a project to prepare this downtown jewel for movies again.
"It's certainly something we've talked about for many years. It's been behind the scenes," Whitehead said. Technology has advanced so far since movies were last shown at the venue.
Doing this event is a way to test the waters for future use of the Perot as a movie venue, Perot staff say. As they have renovated the historic theater, they've discussed the possibility of installing a movie setup, explains Noah Crissman, Perot technical director. This is a way to see if it's worth spending the money. This particular event is largely funded by that $2 enhancement fee Perot patrons pay.
"The event will be a yearly event," Crissman said about the Christmas movies. Nothing is being purchased yet as a long-term solution, but projector equipment is being rented for this trial run.
"It's not cheap," Whitehead said about renting the equipment, "which is why we need to really show the support, show the city that this is something that the community is really interested in."
So far, feedback has been phenomenal, she said. "But attendance needs to be phenomenal as well," Whitehead said.
Preparing such a gorgeous space is intensive work.
"The biggest project so far has been cleaning the old movie screen on the stage," said Randal Conry, operations director. "It required quite a bit of cleaning." Crissman describes it as more than 25 years of dust built up. The screen has been up the entire time, part of what's called the fly house.
"It would be a huge undertaking to take it down and put it back up again," Conry said. It's been used only half dozen times for events over the past three decades, so not much.
To show these movies, a 20,000 lumens projector is being rented, Crissman said. It weights 250 pounds.
"You're talking some substantial electronics that we're going to have to use, which is why the trial run needs to come first before we purchase," Whitehead said.
Other movies are coming up at the Perot, such as "The Wizard of Oz" concert event for the Texarkana Symphony Orchestra in April and "The Legend of Boggy Creek" restored version being shown a couple months later. For the latter, equipment will need to be rented again.
It's been a long, long time since movie magic was felt in the Perot seats.
"When the building first reopened in '82, what was then East Texas State University, now TAMU-T, did a film series for 1982 and again in 1983," Conry said. "That was the last film shown."
What will it be like to see a movie at the Perot after all this time?
"Historic," Whitehead said. "It's truly going to be historic. I think the nostalgic-ness of the whole setting is going to be phenomenal." The staff is excited to provide this opportunity and, she said, "more than thrilled" to see this happen. It also gets people into the Perot with another form of entertainment.
"But the community is super excited to go back in time. Those that remember seeing movies here are very excited," Whitehead said, recommending that people get tickets early.
(Tickets are $5 for a double feature and short film, $5 for the evening movie only and $7 for all movies. The Perot Theatre is located at 221 Main St. in Texarkana, Texas. Get tickets at the Perot Theatre Box Office. More info and ticket purchase: 903-792-4992.)