I was sad to read today that the Astor, as we know it, will probably close soon.
It’s sad that such a wonderful experience will be lost on future cinema goers. No more plush lobby, no more piano music, no more spectacular light show as the curtain rises, no more Astor choc tops, no more dreadfully uncomfortable seats that gave you a back ache if you stay for the entire double feature. I guess the writing was on the wall when they recently stopped sending out their famous calendar. It is comforting to know that archaeologists digging up Melbourne in the centuries to come will probably wonder why all these tiny rooms were thickly covered in theses strange posters. Sigh.
I guess though we, and people like us, are part of the reason we will have to say goodbye. We have a young family, we have a great home theatre set up, we’re watching our budget and a DVD of the films we want to watch now costs less than two tickets, two choc tops, some lollies and something to drink. Sometimes a lot less. If we watch at home we don’t have to worry about baby sitters, parking, cold nights, people who don’t turn their phones off and those seat induced back aches. Of course we miss the wonderful atmosphere, but these days, we are happy with the trade off.
And that’s almost as sad as losing The Astor.
Even though I live far too far away to see a show at The Astor, I’m sorry to hear of its imminent demise. I always liked the fact that it was there, and operating.
Plus, I hoped to make it over for a classic show sometime.