LIBERTY TOWNSHIP, Ohio — Describing the Tri-State’s newest movie theater, which is set to open Nov. 5 in the Liberty Center, is no easy task.
“It’s tough to explain it until you’ve seen it,” said Dennis Stevens, the general manager for the Cobb Luxury 15 & CinéBistro at Liberty Center.
The 100,000-square-foot theater, part of the $350 million mixed-use project being developed at the I-75 and SR 129 interchange in Liberty Township, can be broadly described as an event destination.
It offers two distinct viewing sections, casual and fine dining options, and cutting-edge digital movie-watching technology. And when it opens, the Cobb will offer many customers a new experience before they even step inside.
“We offer reserved seating online or on-site,” said Matt Russell, Cobb Theatres regional operations director.
The theater will begin online seating reservations for the week ahead after the system opens each Tuesday at cobbtheaters.com for all of the facility’s 15 auditoriums. Reservations can be made on those Tuesdays for any day through the Thursday of the next week, Russell said.
What is truly innovative, though, is inside the two-story theater located at 7514 Bales St.
Two Movie Areas, Two Different Experiences
A ticketing counter and kiosks greet visitors on the first floor. Stairs open onto a second-floor common area that offers traditional movie theater concessions, as well as a self-serve frozen yogurt bar and hot meal options like pizza, hamburgers and fries. Also on the first floor entryway, a seating area divides the Cobb into two different cinematic experiences.
To the right of the common area there are nine movie screens with plush, single-person seating and state-of-the-art sound. Visitors can nosh on food and drinks purchased in the concession area while watching movies in reserved seating.
Two of the auditoriums in this section also host movie experiences offered nowhere else in the Tri-State. In the auditorium called the “D-Box,” for an additional $8, movie-lovers can reserve a motion-controlled theater seat that moves in sync with the movement of the film they are watching. For example, the new James Bond film, “Spectre,” will be playing here the day the auditorium opens.
Russell said he has his “fingers crossed” that the new “Star Wars: Force Awakens" movie will be available in D-Box formatting when it opens Dec. 18.
“Imagine flying in the Millennium Falcon,” he said.
The second specialized auditorium in the right wing of the theater is the Dolby Atmos, which offers a three-dimensional audio experience.
Most surround-sound theaters project audio in a horizontal, side-to-side format on wall-mounted speakers. However, Atmos uses a 13-speaker system, a portion of which are mounted on the ceiling, to offer sound effects side-to-side and from above.
“This room literally shakes like you are inside the movie,” Russell said.
Upscale Dining, Drinks At CineBistro
The left side of the theater offers visitors ages 21 and up another experience. A concierge stationed at the stairs will usher visitors to the exclusive “CineBistro” section of the theater through doors for fine dining, a lounge and full-service bar.
A staff of 60 employees on weekends will work to serve CineBistro patrons four-course meals in their theater seats within 30 minutes of ordering, Russell said. The menu will include entrées like filet mignon.
The kitchen is manned by an executive chef, head chef and three sous chefs and has a double-decker broiler that cooks meat at 1,600 degrees. Tours of the kitchen are available to customers at any time, Russell said.
The CineBistro section of the theater features reclining loveseats with fold-out tables. There are fewer seats in this section compared to the other side of the theater; aisles are wider and the double seats take up more space.
With an outdoor balcony overlooking Liberty Square, patrons will also be able to enjoy jazz and other concerts in nicer weather once all of Liberty Center is open.
