The historic Tara Theatre (Regal Tara), one of the longest running, continuously operating movie theaters in metro Atlanta, is closing its doors forever. There was speculation in 2020 that the Atlanta art house cinema – which opened on July 10, 1968 playing the re-release of the epic "Gone With the Wind – would, as a result of the pandemic, not reopen as other theaters had.
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| Tara Theatre when it was temporarily closed in 2020 |
Tara Theatre was known to feature smaller, independent films. Its final screenings are Call Jane, Decision to Leave, TÁR and See How They Run.
In a prepared statement, Regal VP of Communications Richard Grover said this of the closure: “As part of our real estate optimization strategy, Regal has made the decision to close our Regal Tara theatre as we continue to position our company for long-term growth."
Knoxville-based Regal Cinemas was in December 2017 acquired by British theater chain Cineworld for $3.6 billion, making it the second largest global cinema exhibitor, behind AMC. This past September, however, Cineworld filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. On October 31, Reutersreported that the company had reached bankruptcy settlements with landlords and lenders.
Tara Theatre opened as a single screen theater called Loew’s Tara in 1968. The 1,000 plus seat theatre was "twinned" in the summer of 1975. In 1980, the theatre was sold to George Lefont who added a third screen to the east side of the building in 1983 and changed the name to Lefont Tara. A few years later, Hoyts took over but soon sold to the second incarnation of United Artists Theatres. Under UA ownership the #1 house was twinned width wise, resulting in the current layout. United Artists was subsequently acquired by Regal Cinemas.
The Tara Theatre was one of at least two theatres in metro Atlanta to be named for plantations from Gone With the Wind. The other theater - Loew's Twelve Oaks Theater - opened in 1971 and was located in Buford Clairmont Mall (now Plaza Fiesta) along Buford Highway in Chamblee. The former theater building still stands but was repurposed for non-cinematic purposes.
Metro Atlanta is littered with former theatres, many of which have since been torn down or repurposed. Demolished former theatres include Garden Hills Theatre, Akers Mill Theatre and Perimeter Mall Theatre, among others. Toco Hills Theatre is now home to Goldbergs Fine Foods, while the former Lenox Square Theatre is now home to The Spa at the Elaine Sterling Institute.
Atlanta-based Halpern Enterprises owns Cheshire Square (2345 Cheshire Bridge Road) where the Tara Theatre is located. The site plan for the Publix-anchored center does not yet show the 20,470 square foot theatre space as available and it's unclear what, if anything, will become of the theatre building...but with it now being November, at least we know it won't become a Spirit Halloween store!
Are you surprised to see Regal closed Tara Theatre? What is your favorite Tara Theatre memory? What would you like to see open in place of Tara Theatre?
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