PORT RICHEY — The most expensive tickets cost $8.50, movies are first-run, snacks include mozzarella sticks and in four out of six theaters you can sit down and put your feet up.
These are some of the factors that have made the family-owned Cinema 6 a local favorite for family and evening movie outings. But according to Chanel Casteel, who along with Jason Dover has owned and operated the theater for more than a decade, the movie industry isn’t what it used to be.
“Streaming has caused movie numbers to drop,” Casteel said. “And when they don’t release good films, no one comes to the cinema. But we still have bills to pay.
The couple recently expanded into an adjacent space to build an arcade, as well as a cafe and party room, accessible via the theater. The combined businesses are now Cinema 6 (the theater) and Level Up Entertainment (the arcade area).
The arcade has something for everyone, including small children, although most of the games seem aimed at older children or adults who are kids at heart. The space also includes a dining room that will feature meals cooked in the theater’s full kitchen, as well as specialty milkshakes and, for adults, beer, wine and cider.
Casteel said the alcohol will be self-serve: You put money on a card and automation keeps track of how much you pour. This system, she says, allows her staff, mostly teenagers, to work behind the counter without serving alcohol.
Adults not accompanied by players can also enjoy the café. For example, Casteel says his book club will hold its December meeting there. Alternatively, adults can watch a movie while their (well-behaved) children enjoy the video games room. By then, she hopes, the entire complex will be fully operational.
This may be the most important change for theater, but it is not the first. Last year saw a major overhaul of some screening rooms, and before that, the move from 35mm film to digital streaming was a major effort, Casteel said. Faced with changing technologies and tastes, as well as uncontrollable factors, such as recent hurricanes and their effects on the economy and people’s immediate priorities, “we had to get very creative and come out “off the beaten path” to get people through their doors. , she said.
Although Casteel was involved in setting up the food and beverage areas, it was Jason and their youngest daughter, Ella Dover, who selected the games and planned the arcade installation. Jason wants Level Up Entertainment to open a second location in about two years, perhaps with mini golf or racing. Ella, who at 16 is already studying business, plans to run this establishment herself.
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Which would be in line with the company’s family-oriented philosophy. Casteel said all of her children have worked there and her oldest daughter recently returned because she can take her new baby to work. And she and Jason consider the high school students they’ve hired over the years to be part of their own family.
The new complex, she said, will be a place where others can come and enjoy a few hours or a day with family in one place.
Cinema 6 is located at 9510 US 19 in Port Richey. For more information and tickets, visit thecinema6.com.