Nassau Street Garden Theater set to re-open by June 2001 class reunions

The much-awaited completion of the Nassua Street Garden Theater renovation project is nearing. Both University and construction officials said they are committed to opening the remodeled complex by June 1, in time for the beginning of Reunions.

The Garden Theater, which is owned by the University and was originally constructed in 1919 to house the University Triangle Club, was converted into a movie theater when Triangle moved to McCarter Theatre in the late 1920s.

During the years following its original conversion, however, the theater suffered significant deterioration. By the time the building closed for renovations in August 2000, serious problems had developed, said Charles Yedlin, the project's construction manager.

According to Yedlin, the biggest concerns were sound leakage between the theater's two viewing rooms, uncomfortable and inadequate seating, cracks in the base concrete floor and inadequate bathroom facilities — problems that necessitated a complete renovation.

Yedlin's company has done other work for the University in the past, including renovations of the Stephens Fitness Center, Murray-Dodge Hall and the U-Store.

"The whole interior of the theater was gutted; there was a complete interior demolition," said Yedlin.

There will still be two screens in the complex, though the balconies at the back of the theaters have been converted to projection rooms, he added.

In the remodeled complex, the theater seating — which was widely regarded as uncomfortable and inadequate — has been altered significantly. According to Yedlin, of the approximately 220 seats in each theater, about 60 percent will be stadium style. Additionally, the bathrooms have been enlarged and are now handicap accessible. By all accounts, the viewing technology that has been integrated is "state-of-the-art," Yedlin said.

Despite the structural and technological changes, the types of movies that will be shown at the Garden Theater will remain largely the same.

Louise Stephens, president of the operating company in control of the theater, selects the movies that will run on the theater's two screens.

She said she generally plans to devote one screen to artsy, independent films and the other to larger, more commercialized productions.

"I really look at the two screens separately," Stephens said. "One screen will be as close to an art house movie screen as possible. The other screen will vary from higher-end commercial productions, but may also include art products."

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Stephens speculated that if the theater were open now, she might be showing "In the Mood for Love" — an independent production in Cantonese by USA films — on one screen and "Traffic" on the screen devoted to more commercialized pictures.

The improvements resulting from the University-financed theater remodeling have been expensive, however.

According to Pamela Hersh, director of community and state affairs for the University, an exact final cost for the project is still uncertain, but will likely be close to twice the initial estimate of $600,000.

"We can't say a final cost until the day [the theater] opens," Hersh said. "Right now, it has cost well over a $1 million, but that figure may be higher by the time we open."

All parties involved seem to believe the renovations are well worth the high cost. Yedlin predicted the new theater would become "a jewel of downtown Princeton." Stephens expressed a similar sentiment.

"Princeton University has been extraordinary in general in going after the best possible technical equipment," she said. "This complex has the best possible equipment for a theater of its size."