Politics & Government
30 Percent Of Exterior Work Completed On New Canaan Playhouse Project
Superintendent of Buildings Bill Oestmann said the newly renovated Playhouse movie theater is still planned to open in late 2023.
NEW CANAAN, CT — Approximately 30 percent of exterior work on The Playhouse movie theater in downtown New Canaan has been completed, according to the town's superintendent of buildings.
During a meeting Wednesday, Bill Oestmann told members of the Town Council renovation work was continuing smoothly and the theater's reopening was still planned for late 2023, which will also mark the building's 100th anniversary.
"We're moving right along with the design, development of the interior work...everybody's on board," Oestmann said. "We've been doing a lot of meetings over there, going through everything. It's been pretty good."
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Though work has mostly been done on the exterior of the building so far, plans also call for the building's interior to be renovated.
Over the summer, First Selectman Kevin Moynihan announced the town was working with New Jersey-based Cinema Lab LLC to renovate and reopen The Playhouse.
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In announcing the project, Moynihan said the town was "very pleased to be working with the Cinema Lab team to create a movie theater experience in New Canaan that will be truly unique and will benefit our business community and will be enjoyed by our residents and residents of surrounding towns for years to come."
The first selectman also noted the project was planned to preserve the building's charm and historical significance while adding a number of exciting enhancements, including a bar, a concession café, re-imagined auditorium seating and more.
See also: Renovations, Reopening Planned For New Canaan Playhouse
Oestmann said the town is working with Cinema Lab's design and technical teams to try and move the project along as quickly as possible despite supply chain issues.
"There's probably a good 10 of us talking regularly and meeting [over] Zoom," Oestmann said, "and then every other week [having] a live meeting and keeping the ball going on everything."
Oestmann told council members he would provide further updates on the project at a future meeting.
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