The Redwood Drive-In Theatre has reopened for the summer, giving people another movie theater alternative during the coronavirus pandemic.
The drive-in theater is open seven nights a week, but there are some precautions and procedures patrons will need to take.
- Cars can’t be parked within 10 feet of another vehicle.
- Movies must be viewed from within the car.
- Social distancing must be practiced at all time.
But the theater has opened a snack bar and the bathrooms. Social distancing is encouraged within those locations, too.
“We wish to sincerely thank all our loyal customers for their continued support, and we look forward to better serving you in the near future when this present situation has passed,” the theater said in a release.
The theater releases its schedule every Wednesday. It includes showtimes for Friday through the following Thursday.
Drive-In theaters have experienced something of a resurgence in recent weeks because of the COVID-19 outbreak, which has forced traditional movie theaters to close down and shutter their screens for the time being. According to New York Film Academy, drive-in theaters were all the rage in the early part of the 20th century. There were once 4,000 drive-in theaters. Now, that number is closer to 300.
Water Gardens Cinema 6 in Pleasant Grove, Utah, opened its parking lot for a drive-in theater experience. Kyle Larsen, general manager of Water Gardens, told me that he and his staff were thinking of ideas about how to operate during the coronavirus pandemic when the idea struck him to open a drive-in theater.
“The community came together and helped us and we started the drive-in,” he said.
Larsen predicted other theaters would follow his lead.
“It’s giving the employees opportunity to have work and have a paycheck, as well as giving the public something to do,” he said. “I think other theaters will follow. In fact, I’m sure they will.”