Village Cinemas At SOPAC Will Reopen July 22

SOUTH ORANGE, NJ — The Village Cinemas at the South Orange Performing Arts Center (SOPAC) will reopen on July 22 and will offer some of the summer's blockbusters, as well as independent films and documentaries series.

"After the unbelievable fifteen months that we have all shared, we are so excited to bring movie-going back to the community," said Luke Parker Bowles one of the team members of Cinema Lab, the new operator at The Village.

Also on the team are actor and producer Patrick Wilson and entrepreneur and former Stitcher CEO Erik Diehn.

Tickets for the first shows will be on sale soon and will be available to buy online here.

The five-screen movie theatre underwent some renovations and will now have "plush seating, an updated lobby lounge space and a technology-first environment," according to a press release.

Visitors will be able to be in control of their tickets and pre-order concessions.

“Our community has keenly felt the loss of arts programming throughout the past months. With the opening of The Village at SOPAC, and live performances scheduled in the Jennifer and Tony Leitner Performance Hall, there is a buzz of anticipation in the air,” said SOPAC’s Acting Executive Director Dee Billia.

The Village at SOPAC is the first in a series of movie theaters Cinema Lab is planning on opening this year. The Bradley, in Bradley Beach, is scheduled to open later this year and The Maplewood, in Maplewood, will open in 2022.

The company hopes to open 15 venues in the next five years across the United States.