Sundance Cinemas to open this November in former Angelika theater

By Joe Dwyer     4/7/11 7:00pm

Robert Redford's Sundance Cinema will open in Bayou Place on Nov. 1, taking over the space vacated by the Angelika Film Center last Sept., according to a press release issued last Thursday by the City of Houston.

"Sundance Cinemas Houston will feature specialized programming, playing the finest movies for a discerning audience culled from film festivals and the best in general release," reads the release.

For the average Rice student, this means that movies are finally accessible via METRORail once again, and, additionally, Sundance will offer film programming similar to the Angelika's diverse palette of both indie and mainstream Hollywood releases. But for those looking to simply resume their old downtown moviegoing ways from the Angelika years of yore, take notice — Sundance caters to a slightly different demographic than you may be used to.

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Outside of the slightly higher ticket prices than the Angelika, Sundance is a cinephile's wet dream — stadium seating, digital surround sound and projection, no pre-show ads and assigned seating. That's right, just like flying Continental, you can purchase tickets online or at a lobby kiosk and select the seat or seats you want. No waiting in line or showing up to find that the only pair of seats is in the very front row. This, paired with no pre-show ads — the theater shows programming from the Sundance Channel before the film starts — means that you'll be paying one to two dollars on top of your ticket price, but considering the $10 highway robbery that Edwards charges for their sticky-floored theaters, I'd say that's a fair deal.

Probably the best way to describe Sundance to someone who has never been to one before (the only other locations are in San Francisco, Calif. and Madison, Wisc.) is that it's a posh version of the Alamo Drafthouse, serving alcoholic beverages and slightly more refined fare than your typical servery dinner or overpriced jumbo Reese's Pieces and Pibb Xtra. And yes, you can take your food and drinks into the theater with you.

Both preexisting Sundance locations also boast promotions that will hopefully also be featured at the new Houston location, namely San Francisco's "Over 21" evening screenings that kick out the young'ns and open the balcony bar in the theater to those of age, and Madison's "Student Tuesday" showings that let students get a pair of seats for the price of one.

The Houston Chronicle's real estate blog said negotiations took about eight months before Sundance Cinemas finally signed a 10-year lease with Baltimore-based Cordish Co., the current lease holder of Bayou Place. Ed Wulfe, chairman of Wulfe and Co., who participated in the negotiations on behalf of Houston, said that the cost of remodeling the 36,000 square foot space previously occupied by the Angelika would run close to $2.25 million, which is to be split between the Downtown Redevelopment Authority, Cordish Co. and Sundance Cinemas. Provided that Sundance meets a certain projected sales target, a percentage of their sales will be paid back to the Downtown Redevelopment Authority.

With Sundance replacing the old Angelika's space — the rough equivalent of getting your DeLorean stolen and waking up to find a Bugatti in the driveway — moviegoers will be treated to a slightly more upscale cinema experience than they might be used to, but it's hard to overlook the simple fact that cinema has finally returned to downtown. Now it's up to us to take advantage of this fantastic new resource and help make it a permanent fixture in Houston.

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