Guests attend multi-platinum artist Lana Del Rey's premiere of "Tropico" at Cinerama Dome at ArcLight Cinemas on December 4, 2013 in Hollywood. Getty Images for Interscope The protracted shuttering of Hollywood’s Cinerama Dome has been a sore spot among local cinephiles since it closed during the pandemic. That resentment spilled out into a public hearing Tuesday morning which devolved into a tense airing out of grievances that left attendees disheartened that the iconic theater will reopen anytime soon.
At Tuesday’s hearing, the Cinerama Dome did receive approval for a conditional use permit to serve alcohol which signaled to some that the theater is a step closer to reopening its doors. But, as Page Six Hollywood witnessed during the contentious hearing with LA’s Office of Zoning Administration, there is very little faith that the theater’s current ownership is committed to reopening.
Elizabeth Petersen-Gower, who was presenting on behalf of the Forman family, who have operated the complex since its 1963 opening, provided no timeline for reopening the Cinerama Dome, which incensed attendees.
“This is simply a delay tactic to actually not open the Dome again,” said David Blanchard, a trailer editor who has worked in the industry since 2003. Blanchard also noted that various industry figures including Quentin Tarantino have expressed interest in buying the theater. “Interested buyers had made offers in the past, which the owners have declined. If they actually have no intention of reopening, which many, many people are beginning to feel is the case, why not set a price that will more than satisfy their needs and put the Dome on the public market?”
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Since Arclight — the Forman-owned theater chain that includes the Dome — closed its theaters in 2021, most of its other locations were acquired by rival theater chains like Regal and AMC. The Cinerama Dome was an exception. Several participants during the hearing asked the zoning administration to approve the alcohol permit on the condition that a re-opening timeline be provided — to no avail.
Petersen-Gower took the 42-minute tongue-lashing in stride, remaining stoic throughout. “I understand the frustration of timing, having owned a lot of businesses in the area and in downtown,” she said.
“Save Your Cinema” founder Ben Steinberg, who has been publicly campaigning to re-open the cineplex for the last six years, left the hearing unimpressed. “I was disappointed. I think their property representative was really evasive and ambiguous,” he told P6H. “They’ve tried to remain as secretive as possible, and they have all of these historic buildings that they’re keeping abandoned.”
