UPDATED: Cinema de Lux in White Plains to close

The Business Journal learned on Sept. 6 that the Showcase Cinema de Lux at the City Center in White Plains will be closing. The last day of business will be Sunday, Oct. 29, the Business Journal was told. In a statement to the Business Journal on Sept. 7, Showcase Cinemas said that it had failed to come to a lease renewal agreement for its space at the City Center.

“Showcase Cinemas is deeply committed to our U.S. theatrical exhibition business and we look forward to continuing to provide a superior movie-going experience to our loyal patrons at our Showcase Cinema de Lux Ridge Hill and Showcase Cinema de Lux Cross County, both in Yonkers,” Showcase said. 

City Center with movie theater marque in center of photo as seen in 2017.

The 15-screen theater was a major attraction when it opened in on June 25, 2005, and has been a focal point in the city’s downtown ever since. It opened with approximately 3,200 seats but the seating capacity was reduced over time as the theater installed wider, more luxurious seating. An IMAX auditorium was added where movies could be seen on an almost wall-to-wall, ceiling-to-floor screen. The most recent IMAX attraction to play at the theater is “Oppenheimer.”

Mark Malinowski, VP of Global Marketing for Showcase Cinemas told the Business Journal, “With the release of hit films such as ”˜Barbie,”™ ”˜Oppenheimer”™ and ”˜Super Mario Bros.,”™ Showcase Cinemas is seeing a significant increase in year-to-date circuit attendance over last year.  Additionally, our advance sales for October”™s ”˜Taylor Swift/The Eras Tour”™ film are incredibly strong as we continue to add show times in advance of the film”™s release. All of this points to the fact that people are falling in love with movie-going once again, as they cannot get the same communal experience by viewing a film at home.”

When asked about the closing, White Plains Mayor Tom Roach said, “I think it’s of course a sad day but not really a surprise. I think it’s a reflection of where the entertainment industry has moved. A combination of streaming and I think Covid really accelerated a process that was already underway.”

Roach said that the theater operation occupied a lot of space at City Center but he understood that talks are taking place with possible new tenants.

“When the film industry starts releasing films onto TV at the same time they’re putting them into theaters I think it’s a problem,” Roach said. He also expressed a hope that White Plains will not be without movies downtown for very long.