[Left to Right: Phoenix Theatres’ Jordan Hohman, Cinema United’s Phil Contrino, and Phoenix Theatres’ Cory Jacobson]
Detroit-based Phoenix Theatres opened their ninth location and first theatre in beautiful Clarksville, Tennessee at the Governor’s Square Mall on May 22nd—just in time for a historic Memorial Day weekend at the box office. Phoenix Theatres now operates 79 screens in five states: Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee. At this new location, Dolby provided all the cinema servers, sound processors, loudspeakers, and new digital amplifiers in every auditorium. Dolby ATMOS is installed in five of the 10 screens at Governor’s Square, and an impressive 25% of Phoenix’s screens are in ATMOS-equipped auditoriums.
The team at Phoenix—led by owner Cory Jacobson—turned the opening into a true communal event for local residents: the Montgomery Central High School marching band performed the Mission: Impossible theme; Anthony Cafaro, Co-President and Owner of The Cafaro Company, spoke about the importance of having a movie theatre at the mall; Mike Rainey, Chairman of the Clarksville Area Chamber of Commerce, touted valuable how the cinema is to the community; and movie fans of all ages were treated to a buffet dinner from mall neighbor Dave & Busters and four free screenings to pick from (Lilo & Stitch, Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, Top Gun: Maverick, and the original Star Trek film.)
“It’s safe to say that this is the largest turnout we’ve had for a ribbon cutting,” said Rainey to applause from the more than 200 people gathered. “As you walk through the theatre tonight, you are going to realize the investment that Phoenix Theatres has put into Clarksville. It goes a long way toward helping us enhance the quality of life for our community.”
“Movie theatres in the past were synonymous with big jazzy entrances, adding an element of showmanship to moviegoing,” said Cory Jacobson when discussing how he landed on the design for this location. “Our new theatre at Governor’s Square Mall needed to develop a character all its own and now features a new glass entranceway that enhances the size of the new lobby.”
“We wanted to do something truly spectacular and enhance the cinema experience to a new level,” added Jordan Hohman, Vice President of Project Development for Phoenix Theatres.
Derek Almada will serve as General Manager of the Governor’s Square Mall location. He was promoted from Phoenix’s Dubuque, Iowa location after working with the company for a year and a half. In a heartfelt speech at the opening, Almada thanked his girlfriend for moving to Tennessee with him, and he promised the best possible moviegoing experience to the excited customers in attendance.
