survey results

We had just under 500 respondents to our recent survey. For all of you who took the time to fill out the survey we are very grateful. Although we have not yet compiled all the comments - there are some trends worth noting. The most surprising statistic is that 75% of you only come to see a movie every 2-3 months, yet a similar percentage said they are happy with our programming choices. So, we are scratching our heads wondering what would bring more of you - more often to the Savoy. Most of you said you liked the split-billing but don't like a late show - and so, where possible we will offer split-billings and alternating showtimes. Please feel free to email us your comments.

Another frequent comment was to show fewer "dark" or "violent" films. Although we are not in control of the type of films being made in the independent film category, we will endeavor to offer split billings with at least one lighter choice. Although 76% of you preferred the email update - many said they missed the Times Argus ads. Although it is quite expensive to run daily ads, we have resumed with ads running Thursday - Sunday.

Movie Calendar

Another request we heard from quite a few of you is to bring back the movie calendar. We listened!We will begin a new rotation of the Movie Calendar starting June 18th. Films will be booked 6-8 weeks in advance. The drawback to this format is that in order to book films 6-8 weeks in advance most films will have shown in Burlington or St. J. already. We are hoping you all will support us in coming to the Savoy while we honor your request for advance programming. Additionally, we will be sandwiching-in recently released films that have a lot of buzz surrounding them - like "The Kids are Alright" booked for July 30th.

It's Back - Movie Calendar flyer ~ put it on your fridge!

Beer & wine, Champlain Chocolate, Morse Farm Maple kettle-corn.

What's New at the Savoy

a note from Terry Youk...

June, marks six months since I inherited the Savoy Theater, and already there have been many improvements, changes and challenges.

As you may have seen by now, the theater has had a dramatic transformation, including a new and improved concession area (crafted at Yestermorrow), a bathroom upstairs (No - you can't hear flushing during the most dramatic moments of the film...If you can we will give you a free medium popcorn!), a beautiful new ticket window, natural clay plaster walls, and new flooring. What you may not know is that all of the labor costs for the renovations were generously donated by local craftspeople and volunteers who came in with expertise and goodwill to keep our beloved Savoy alive and full of new promise.

Other improvements include an upgraded sound system and a Blu-ray projector in addition to our existing film projectors. We have new concession offerings as well, including beer and wine in the theater, Champlain Chocolate bars, Morse Farm Maple Kettle-corn (Yes, we still have our very tasty gourmet popcorn... with optional brewer's yeast!) and we now take credit/debit cards - with cash-back if you need it for concession items.

Downstairs Video

Also you may have noticed, we moved Downstairs Video to 7 E.State St. - right around the corner from Coffee Corner. We toyed with renaming it "No-Stairs Video" or at Andrea's suggestion "On-the-Level Video" - but why mess with a classic - so the name remains the same! Please come by and check us out - we have many new titles in all genres, including entire seasons of many popular TV shows and we now offer a two night rental on all new releases.

Sight-lines & Cine Club

There are some improvements we will not be able to solve and others we have yet to complete. Sadly, we were unable to solve the sight-line issue in the theater. We conducted extensive tests and the fix we had hoped for offered negligible improvement for the $21k that it would have cost. We are looking into seat pillows for patrons who have difficulty reading the sub-titles.

Additionally, we have yet to complete the basement Cine Club screening space. We are just about to begin Phase Two of our renovations and plan to be up and running in mid-July. In case you haven't heard, the Cine Club space will be our downstairs 40 seat theater (106" diagonal screen) featuring Blu-ray Hi-Def DVD films with surround sound - complete with a full concession area and a wine bar. The Space will actually serve several different functions:

We will be showing the Cine Club Series on weekday evenings with discussion before and after the film. Learn all the back-stories and participate in fun and substantive discussions of great films from every genre.
Friday and Saturdays we will be offering recently released films downstairs. In most cases you will now have a choice of four different films between the upstairs and downstairs theaters.
Education. We will be begin offering Film and Media literacy courses in the fall. These will cover everything from basic filmmaking skills to in-depth film studies (offered in conjunction with local schools and educators) featuring discussions with filmmakers from every genre.
Last but not least - the downstairs is available for private functions. Whether it is a business meeting (we have state-of-the-art video conferencing technology) a birthday, special screenings for children, a Bar or Bat Mitzvah or you just want to show a film for your friends - the downstairs Film Club has reasonable rates and flexible hours 7 days a week.

As you can see, there will be lots more activity here at the Savoy. We hope you will help us by participating in all the new offerings we have planned!

Membership

Membership at the Savoy is an important part of our financial health and we appreciate and depend on your continued goodwill for our survival. You can avail yourself of the many benefits of becoming a Savoy & Downstairs Video member by filling out the form today. Many thanks in advance for renewing or if you are a new member for your gift of membership!

All the best,
Terry Youk

P.S. Of course, we will send you a voucher for a free medium popcorn when you renew your membership!