Movie theaters are back (some of them) starting today (at limited capacity).

Remember going out to the movies? That hasn't been a thing since March of 2020, but some theaters in Monterey County are reopening their doors today, March 19. 

Cinemark CEO Mark Zoradi even made a short movie (OK, just a three-minute-long video clip) explaining the company's new safety protocols and enthusiasm for reopening. “We are eager for you to once again share in the awe and power of great cinematic storytelling on the big screen, something that truly cannot be replicated at home,” Zoradi said. "Reopening our doors is going to be a celebration."

Monterey County entered California's less restrictive Red Tier on Wednesday, based on Covid-19 infection rates, enabling several indoor industries to reopen. That includes movie theaters, at 25-percent or 100 people, whichever is less. 

Cinemark theaters at Del Monte Center in Monterey, Northridge Mall in Salinas, and The Dunes Shopping Center in Marina reopen today, as well as Maya Cinemas in Oldtown Salinas. 

Showtimes will be staggered to prevent crowding in shared areas like lobbies and restrooms, and Cinemark theaters will conduct employee wellness checks before each shift and sanitize high-traffic areas every 30 minutes. Households can purchase adjacent seats, and theaters are encouraging moviegoers to purchase limited tickets in advance and to utilize their touchless ticketing system.

"We're evolving how we operate to make sure you feel confident and comfortable when you visit one of our theaters,” Zoradi said. “We’re changing how we work.”

At Cinemark locations, every other row will be blocked off and two seats on either side of every seating assignment will be blocked off. Same-household viewers are advised to book tickets together in order to sit together. 

Movie offerings are limited and so are their opening hours. The Del Monte Center theater, for example, is open on weekdays from 4-8pm and on weekends from 1-10pm. 

Maya Cinemas is also reopening beginning today, March 19. Like Cinemark, the venue is limiting its hours and taking health precautions. They will be open from 4-8pm daily, require all guests to wear masks, require all employees to wear PPE, and unfortunately for fans of the self-serve Coca-Cola machine, that will no longer be self-serve. (Details on precautions and changes can be on their website.) 

Representatives of Lighthouse Cinemas in Pacific Grove did not respond to calls or emails, and based on their phone system it appears they are not reopening imminently. Osio Theater in Monterey closed permanently last fall. 

At independently owned King City Cinemas, owner Andrew Davis isn't quite ready to reopen this weekend, but a reopening plan is in the works. 

“We are starting to just go through and change out bags of Pepsi and stuff like that. We do not have an exact open date as of yet,” he says. 

Just before the pandemic, King City Cinemas ordered new seats for a major theater remodel, going from 400 seats to 280 bigger seats, including 90 recliners. They’ve spent the closure period installing those. 

Davis has an optimistic outlook when it comes to theaters recovering from the pandemic closure, but he’s less optimistic about competing with streaming services in general. 

“Movie theaters will survive Covid, but it’ll be [harder] if Hollywood ends up making more money streaming,” he says. “I’m not sure they will survive what Hollywood plans.”

Theaters are now competing with licenses to screen movies that many people can easily get at home. Davis notes that as the U.S. market shifts to streaming services, big theaters remain popular internationally, where comfortable seating, air conditioning, good sound systems and big screens can be harder to come by, and he expects the international movie theater market to keep booming post-pandemic. But even locally, he says, the experience of going to a theater doesn’t compare to watching movies at home: “There’s something about sitting in a dark room, completely captivated,” he says. “It is important for people to recognize if they don’t go to the theater, it may go away.”