Electrical problem darkens Batavia movie theater

The screens are dark at the Randall 15 IMAX movie theater in Batavia due to an electrical problem - and may be for up to two weeks, unless a temporary fix can be found.

The building at 550 N. Randall Road lost power around 8:40 a.m. Aug. 8. When that happened, a short occurred in wiring in an electrical transformer inside the building, damaging the transformer and the building's electrical panel, said Jeremy Curtis, regional manager for Goodrich Quality Theaters.

Curtis said a replacement transformer and panel have been ordered, but it may take up to two weeks to be received and installed.

In the meantime, the company is working with Batavia's electrical utility to see if any temporary service option is available.

"It's a little weird seeing the building dark at night," Curtis said.

There were no patrons in the building at the time of the outage, just a cleaning crew. Curtis said the it appears the theater's digital projection system was not damaged.

"We lost a few pizzas and hot dogs" at the concession stand, he said.

Patrons who had bought tickets in advance for movie showings have had their money refunded, he said. The theater will try to reschedule any special movie screenings, such as Flashback Cinema showings of older movies, or the "Apocalypse Now: Final Cut" that would play on the IMAX screen.

Some of the theater's 60 employees are working in the meantime at a sister theater, the Kendall 11 GDX in Oswego, Curtis said. That theater offers reserved seating, so it suggests moviegoers buy tickets in advance to guarantee a seat.

The Batavia theater was built in 1994 as a 10-screen facility. It expanded to 16 screens, but sacrificed one of them when it built an IMAX auditorium.