Still rolling: How the Roxy Theatre remains a Revelstoke staple

Nestled on Mackenzie Avenue, just down from the Grizzly Plaza is Revelstoke’s very own Roxy Theatre. Boasting a laser-projection ready screen, new sound system and everything from summer blockbusters to indie skiing films, The Roxy is a beacon of indoor entertainment in a town often heralded for outdoor recreation.

Operating for nearly 70 years with a moniker that pays homage to the Roxy Theatre in New York City, Revelstoke’s movie theatre first opened in its current location in 1938 under the name the Avolie. Since then, a range of caretakers have steered the theatre through a world war, international financial crises and pandemic that brought many movie theatres to their knees. 

It’s in that latest chapter that Greg Rose, The Roxy’s current caretaker stepped in. Taking on the role of owner and operator in November 2020, Rose was buzzing with ideas to keep the cinema open and accessible for Revelstoke.

“It’s such a cool little theatre and we have a town that comes out for it,” Rose told Revelstoke Mountaineer. “I want to keep that ball rolling.”

He had less than a week under his belt as the new operator before Covid-19 restrictions shuttered The Roxy for months.

“A bit of a false start would be putting it mildly,” Rose said. 

Not willing to twiddle his thumbs while he waited for the theatre to open back up, Rose used the time to get some long overdue projects completed. 

“This is a business that’s open every day. There’s not always a ton of opportunity to get things done,” he said. While The Roxy served up popcorn, candy and even ran a Can for Candy food drive during lockdown, Rose was finding lightbulb replacements, familiarizing himself with the projector and updating things wherever he could while keeping the beloved retro feel of the theatre in tact.

One of those updates was The Roxy’s website and social media to keep connected with the general public.

“There’s a lot of competition for our entertainment,” Rose said, explaining that making movie listings, times, prices and online ticket purchasing as accessible as possible to the community helps build trust.

From knowing what’s playing when to the lights dimming right on time, Rose wants The Roxy to be one of the most dependable sources of entertainment in Revelstoke.

“If you’re not staying up with things, that gives people reason to take other opportunities to entertain themselves. So, that’s in my DNA to just be open and available and on time.”

Old roots, new features

Marrying new theatre technology with the infrastructure in The Roxy is an art, and Rose has connected with smaller, independent theatres throughout Canada to share supply resources, maintenance tricks and stories of all the quirks found in theatres that have long stood for decades.

“You’d never be able to build a theatre like this with current code,” Rose said, highlighting the steep pitch The Roxy boasts, providing clear views for each row of seats even in the small theatre space. Ever since taking on the operator position, he’s toured other smaller theatres, oftentimes struck by the flat floor of seating shoehorned into old churches and community halls.

“We really are blessed with this beautiful, old building,” Rose said.

One of the more recent updates Rose installed to keep providing the best experience for moviegoers is a $15,000 movie screen, installed in November 2024. The new screen increased the projection space by nearly 32 per cent and is designed to support laser projection, a technology that offers deeper colour ranges and sharper images.

“When it comes time to update our projector, move into that technology, the screen is ready and we’re not having that cost as well,” Rose said.

While a new projector isn’t in the immediate future, Rose is keeping his finger on Revelstoke’s moviegoing pulse.

“There are people who are so deeply passionate about this theatre, about movies, about what we offer. I want to always be honouring that passion.”

He’s teaching his staff that same respect and passion. Boasting a crew largely made up of local teenagers, oftentimes providing them their first ever job, Rose said he’s more than comfortable letting the team run the show some nights.

“It’s a privilege, seeing them all come up. This place would not run without all of the kids that work here,” he said.

Rose is aware that theatre-going takes commitment. Between time, costs and even coordinating childcare, visiting The Roxy might not be an easy spur-of-the-moment activity for some. But keeping The Roxy thriving in Revelstoke doesn’t take too much from residents and visitors, Rose explained.

“If everyone in town comes out to two or three movies a year, the business is fine,” he said. With a goal of catering movie experiences for all ages, Rose wants everyone to feel like The Roxy belongs to them.

Local tech support

Keeping the technology of The Roxy running doesn’t always mean reaching outside of town for tech resources, Rose pointed out. Even in a town as small as Revelstoke, top-of-the-line support is just around the corner at RevyTech.

“We’re a town of 8,000, and you can go down there and get a motherboard soldered? Any other small town you’d have to leave for that,” Rose said.

Keegan’s passion for providing support in Revelstoke highlights the overall community feel of keeping things local.

“We’re really blessed to have a lot of passionate business owners here that take it seriously,” Rose said of Keegan and others. “A lot of them are competing with the big cities to keep business here.”