For several hours on a recent Wednesday night, life felt normal again for Kristen Allen and her family.
Like millions of people around the world, Allen had spent months keeping relatives she loved at a distance during the pandemic.
She missed doing things with her mother, who, in her 70s and with several health issues, had not gone anywhere since the country started locking down in March.
“I wanted to get her out of the house,” Allen said. “Take her somewhere where we would all feel comfortable enough that she wasn’t around too many people.”
Allen had her mom in mind when she booked an auditorium for a private screening session at Galaxy Theatres on Tucson’s east side.
The movie chain, which reopened its one Tucson location on Labor Day weekend, recently launched a private screening program at its 16 theaters throughout the West. It is one of several theaters in the Tucson area, including The Loft Cinema and most Cinemark locations, offering auditorium rentals during the pandemic.
Moviegoers wait in their seats before a private screening at Galaxy Theatres in Tucson.
For $99, customers at Galaxy can choose from a list of 40 classic films, from “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory” to “The Wizard of Oz,” to watch with up to 19 of their friends and family. For $150, you can book first-run films, such as Christopher Nolan’s “Tenet” and “The New Mutants.”
Allen chose “The Goonies,” the 1985 classic that follows a group of young outcasts on a treasure hunt under their seaside town in the Pacific Northwest.
“Mom had never seen it,” Allen said. “It was so fun.”
Other family members, Allen’s sister, her sister’s husband and a nephew also made the screening.
“Because we had the theater to ourselves, we were able to joke and goof around a little bit,” Allen said. “It was like a family get together done in a safer way.”
Karen Foley, general manager at Galaxy Theatres in Tucson, said the private screening program is one of several ways the theater chain has tried to accommodate moviegoers during these unusual times.
“It is something we adopted to give people a more affordable option to stay within their social bubbles while still being able to go out and feel safe,” she said.
And Galaxy is not alone.
In July, the Texas-based Cinemark Theatres chain, which has more than 500 locations across the country, including five in Tucson under the Cinemark and Century brands, announced its Private Watch Party viewing program.
Like Galaxy, parties can include up to 20 people. Classic movies are $99, and new film screenings are $149.
Chanda Brashears, Cinemark vice president of investor relations and public relations, said the program has been very popular across the board.
“In this ‘new normal,’ it is clear that moviegoers are loving the opportunity to rent out an entire auditorium and get a very exclusive experience,” Brashears added.
Filmgoers order snacks at the concession stand before a private screening at The Loft Cinema, 3233 E. Speedway.
In midtown, the nonprofit independent movie theater The Loft Cinema, 3233 E. Speedway, has been renting out its theaters for private screenings since June.
The Loft closed its doors in March and had been getting by on its curbside concession sales, streaming movie program and with money from its annual spring fundraising drive.
But as time dragged on and the closure continued, “we needed an idea to generate some revenue,” said The Loft’s program director Jeff Yanc.
“It was trying to think outside the box at that time because we couldn’t reopen,” Yanc said. “We already had a rental program in place for private events, so we knew how to do that. We knew we could be safe in terms of social distancing, and we put in a lot of protocols in place to keep people safe while they were renting the theater.”
Yanc said the private screenings were a hit right off the bat. It is rare that the Loft doesn’t have at least one booking every night of the week. Some nights, you’ll find all three of its auditoriums reserved for screenings. Movies run from science fiction films to classic comedies.
The Loft starts at $100 per hour for its two smaller auditoriums and $125 per hour for its larger, 370-seat auditorium. It had been limiting parties to 10 people, but just recently upped the number to 20.
A sign reminds customers to wear their masks inside The Loft Cinema.
Screening times are staggered to keep crowds down in the lobby. Guests are expected to socially distance and wear masks unless they are eating and drinking in their seats.
“I’ve had people who have rented at the theater multiple times say that they are not comfortable going back to watch a new movie with a crowd of strangers, but they like this a lot,” Yanc said.
Private screenings are the only way customers will be able to see the inside of The Loft for a while. The theater is offering general admission open-air screenings in its parking lot but has not reopened to public indoor screenings.
Socially-distanced moviegoers at an outdoor viewing of "Clueless" at The Loft Cinema.
No tentative opening date has been set.
“We are watching other theaters very closely,” Yanc said. “We are seeing if it is worth it. It is not just a matter of the COVID numbers, it is also to see if there is anything to play.”
Foley of Galaxy Theaters said the private screening program at her location has been popular in the short time since they’ve reopened. She said the theater has booked maybe 10 private screenings a week over the last two weeks, with more requests coming in every day.
“People want to know who they are sitting next to,” Foley said. “They feel comfortable.”
Foley said the program will continue through at least the end of the year. After that, she expects the major movie studios will be releasing feature films at a quicker pace and the number of available theaters Galaxy has to rent out will diminish.
Private screenings for groups of up to 20 people at Galaxy Theatres, shown here, run from $99 for a classic movie to $150 for a new film.
Kristen Allen hopes to get a couple more private screenings in before that happens.
“We are already talking about when we should try and do it again,” Allen said. “We want more of the family to be able to go.”
Photos: El Toro Flicks drive in on a hot night in downtown Tucson
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Tyler Soto guides a car into a parking slot under a setting sun and temps still above 100 degrees just before showtime at El Toro Flicks, 198 S. Granada, Tucson, Ariz., July 10, 2020.
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John Montijo fans Amara Gallardo, just a little bit of relief from the 100+ degree heat still holding sway in the early evening before a showing of Super Bad at El Toro Flicks, 198 S. Granada, Tucson, Ariz., July 10, 2020.
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Emma Stone fills the screen while monsoon clouds roll through the sky to the south, not quite reaching the area during a showing of Super Bad at El Toro Flicks, 198 S. Granada, Tucson, Ariz., July 10, 2020.
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Camilla Hansen, left, and Emma Bartlett are well provisioned, with everything from pizza to gummy worms, just before the start of the show at El Toro Flicks, 198 S. Granada, Tucson, Ariz., July 10, 2020.
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Marlena Ruprecht settles in with her friends during a showing of Super Bad at El Toro Flicks, 198 S. Granada, Tucson, Ariz., July 10, 2020.
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The last of the day's light dies out with Jonah Hill on the screen during a showing of Super Bad at El Toro Flicks, 198 S. Granada, Tucson, Ariz., July 10, 2020.
