IMAX theater opens

The smell of fresh popcorn wafts from the concession stand.

Fresh paint gleams from flanking pillars in the cinema lobby.

Unblemished white lines mark freshly paved parking spaces for theatergoers.

West Ashley not only has a new cinema, it also is home to a new IMAX.

What once was Citadel Mall 6 has been transformed into Citadel Mall Stadium 16 IMAX.

The new cinema complex opens today, bringing the movies back to a part of Charleston where the screens went dark in mid-2008 to make way for the sprawling new 16-screen megaplex on the back side of Citadel Mall, near Belk.

"The key is the IMAX," said Southeast Cinema Entertainment district manager John Snodgrass. "We hope to do a better job of being family-friendly."

To launch its opening and as part of a benefit for the March of Dimes, Charlotte-based Southeast Cinema is offering all movies and concessions for $1 each for the first five days, starting today at 1 p.m.

Then the complex will close for two days and reopen next Friday with all new movies at regular prices.

"We want it to be affordable enough for a family of four to come back more than once a week," Snodgrass said.

The $11 million complex includes a game room and a space for parties and other occasions. All bathrooms in the 51,000-square-foot building offer hands-free facilities.

Lighting strips for stairs in the cinemas run along the wall instead of the floor, and step nose guards glow in the dark. The exit signs are not electrical but luminescent so they do not cast shadows on the screens when they dim the lights.

Non-slip rubber mats made of recycled tires cover stair landings to prevent falls. Woven tapestries from China hang on the walls and accent the aquatic theme throughout the complex. A 150-gallon fish tank graces the lobby.

"We are bright but not garish," Snodgrass said of the chosen color scheme of blue, red and yellow.

In a flurry of last-minute details, workers this week touched up paint, checked the lighting and dusted down the stadium-style rocking seats.

Some of the newly hired 55 employees underwent training while others tested the equipment to make sure the popcorn popped perfectly and movies reeled seamlessly.

Snodgrass said construction moved quickly over the past seven months as the anemic economy poured more skilled contractors into the market than there typically would be.

Southeast Cinema demolished the old AMC Entertainment theater after AMC announced it would shut down the aging complex in April 2008.

It first opened in 1981. After acquiring the facility, Southeast Cinema temporarily resumed operations before leveling the building last fall to make way for the new complex.

The IMAX screen fills a gap left by the former IMAX theater near in downtown Charleston that went dark two years ago.

Citadel Mall could reap some rewards from the new movie complex.

"We feel certain that the mall will see an increase in traffic," Snodgrass said.

Mall spokeswoman Leigh Burnett welcomed the new cinema but said it's hard to say what impact it will have on mall sales.

"We anticipate there will be some crossover," she said. "It's a first of its kind in West Ashley, and we are lucky enough to have it in the mall complex. We have had a lot of good feedback already, and people seem very excited about it."

The new Citadel Mall screens mark the eighth movie complex for Southeast Cinema in the Carolinas and Virginia.

The company operates another one in South Carolina on Hilton Head Island, but it already plans a second one in the Charleston area, Snodgrass said.

"It follows closely on the heels of this one and construction should start by the first of the year," he said.

He declined to identify the location, but it involves renovation of an existing facility.

Main attraction

Some box-office details about the region's newest movie theater, the Citadel Mall Stadium 16 with IMAX:

Prices, regular screens

--Oct. 2-6: $1 for all movies and concession items. The theater will be closed Oct. 7-8. Regular prices apply starting Oct. 9.

--Monday-Thursday: $5 all seats all day

--Friday-Sunday: $9 adults; $6 seniors 62 and over, children 12 and under and military personnel with ID; $5 for first two matinees starting at 1 p.m.; $6 for other matinees until 6 p.m.

IMAX admission

--Monday-Thursday: $8

--Friday-Sunday: -- $12 adults; $8 seniors, children and military; $8 for first two matinees starting at 1 p.m.; $9 for other matinees until 6 p.m. Glasses for 3-D features: $2

Opening lineup:

--Batman: The Dark Knight the IMAX Experience

--Funny People

--Angels and Demons

--Taking of Pelham 1-2-3

--The Ugly Truth

--Obsessed

--Terminator Salvation

--The Orphan

--UP (Digital 3-D)

--Ghosts of Girlfriends Past

--Fly Me to The Moon (Digital 3D)

--Fighting PG-13

--Public Enemies

For times and other information, call 843-556-4629

Reach Warren Wise at 937-5524 or wwise@postandcourier.com.