Royal Oak’s Historic Main Art Theatre Closes After 80 Years

At the moment we're not really sure why Royal Oak's historic Main Art Theatre closed its doors for good. All we know is that after 80 years, the theatre is no more.

Residents in Royal Oak found out about the Main Art Theatre closing after they read a message on the marquee over the weekend which read, "Landlord kicked us out. It’s been a fun ride -Main Art Crew RIP 1941-2021."

It sounds like it was a total surprise to everyone that worked at the theatre which is located on Mainstreet in Royal Oak.

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The Main Art Theatre first opened its doors back in the early 40s and was purchased by Landmark Theatres in 1997.

Back in April, they posted on their Facebook wall stating that they were temporarily closed and would update their page once the theatre reopened, unfortunately, that never happened. A rep for Landmark said it was due to finances and attendance. If that was their reason for the temporary closure, I'm sure it's the same reason for the permanent closure.

According to Metro Times, the Main Art Theatre was known for its eclectic screenings, often offering foreign and indie titles otherwise overlooked by their movie chain colleagues, as well as midnight showings of cult films.

I'm sure some people are hoping the theatre will get purchased by a larger company but it's not likely. Apparently, Emagine Entertainment was approached to take over the lease of the Main Art but they declined. They said the building is in need of significant upgrades and repair.

I remember going to see "The Blair Witch Project" there in 1999 as it was only one of 15 theatres in the country showing the movie at the time. They were sold out for every screening of the movie and lines were wrapped around the building. That was my only time going to Main Art Theatre.