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Coming Attraction: 1940's Era 'The Cary' Theatre Opens Its Doors Again

Town of Cary

Triangle film and theater enthusiasts will have a new venue to check out starting this weekend. "The Cary" has been getting a facelift over the past year. It officially opens Saturday in downtown Cary. It'll show documentaries, 'indie' films and classic box office hits. 

Lyman Collins is cultural arts manager for the town of Cary. He says not much of the original 1940's theatre remains...

"We have two seats from the original theatre," Collins explains.  "We have some of the original electrical connections. We even found a piece of film from a 1950's western. We haven't yet found which film it is, but we actually incorporated that into a staircase railing in the the new building addition."

The building went through many incarnations over the decades after the theatre closed. It became a clothing store and later an auto-parts store. Collins says the ultimate idea was to get back to the building's roots.

"We have a big screen and a big sound system to accommodate film. The screen is retractable and we have nice-sized stage to accommodate a wide variety of entertainment. We see local bands performing. We see some improv, theater, play readings, poetry slams. A whole host of things like that," says Collins.

To celebrate the grand opening, free movies will be shown throughout the day - with an evening performance by the Asheville-based jazz band One Leg Up. On Sunday afternoon, the public is invited to a screening of the big-screen classic, Casablanca.

Saturday Schedule:

9:45 a.m. - Ribbon Cutting
10:30 a.m. - Documentary - Waking Sleeping Beauty
1:00 p.m. - Movie - Goodbye Solo
3:30 p.m. - Movie - Finding Nemo
7:30 p.m. - Jazz Band - One Leg Up

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Fed up with the frigid winters of her native state, Catherine was lured to North Carolina in 2006. She grew up in Wisconsin where she spent much of her time making music and telling stories. Prior to joining WUNC, Catherine hosted All Things Considered and classical music at Wisconsin Public Radio. She got her start hosting late-nights and producing current events talk shows for the station's Ideas Network. She later became a fill-in talk show host and recorded books for WPR's popular daily program, Chapter A Day.
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