By Elmer Ploetz

The North Park Theatre has been a jewel in Western New York’s cinema world since it reopened in 2014; now it’s gotten even a bit better.

The theater closed last weekend for the installation of new 4K laser projection and upgraded audio equipment. The work was completed Thursday and the theater will soon be open to the public.

The theater will offer free screenings of four films Saturday for people who donated toward the $200,000 project, then will open the theater to the general public on Sunday.

Ray Barker, the programming director for the North Park said the four films were chosen to showcase the theater’s new abilities. For example, “The Umbrellas of Cherbourg,” starring Catherine Deneuve, was picked, he said, because of its “very vibrant color palette. We had chosen it specifically so that people could see what this new technology could do.”

The theater is laying claim to having the “most advanced” projection system in Western New York.

The other films being shown Saturday include Stanley Kubrick’s “2001: A Space Odyssey,” Alfred Hitchcock’s “Vertigo” and “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring” extended version (the rest of the series will follow in subsequent days).

The North Park’s thank you video:

One of the keys of the project was raising over $40,000 through a Go Fund Me drive to help the theater access a significant Erie County cultural grant.

The North Park is a nonprofit organization that has taken on the role as the pre-eminent art house movie theater in the region, while balancing that off with community screenings and events and some more popular films.

“I think we really have the most eclectic programming of any cinema in Buffalo,” said Barker. “I think we have the art house fare as kind of our core concept, but we appeal to a lot of different audiences.”

While the projector will provide brighter, sharper images, the theater’s audio was upgraded as well, so now the sound should provide greater range, hitting higher highs and lower lows.

Black Rock Arts opens with Milton Rogovin photos

The new Black Rock Arts venue opened at 43 Hamilton Street in Buffalo’s Black Rock neighborhood Thursday (May 1). It’s starting off with an exhibit of roughly two dozen prints from the legendary social documentary photographer Milton Rogovin.

The photos on display are mostly from the “Working People” series, dating to around 1978, said organizers Jason Duval and Dorota Kolodziejczyk, with a smaller number from the “Lower West Side Revisited” work. Some date as late as the 1990s.

Rogovin, who died in 2011 at the age of 101, became internationally known for his photos of working class people and their neighborhoods, eventually seeing his works shown in museums around the world.

The new gallery at the corner of Hamilton and Deerborn streets, will be open 5-8 p.m. today (Friday, May 2) and 11 a.m.-3 p.m. on Saturday (May 3). After that, the gallery will be open every Saturday from 11 to 3, or by appointment by calling or texting 347-469-0646 or emailing blackrockartsbuffalo@gmail.com.

Organizers describe the new venue as an “artist-run, non-commercial exhibition space, offering a platform for works and ideas that haven’t found a suitable outlet in the typical commercial gallery
scenario.” They say they’re interested in exploring new works by unfamiliar or under-represented artists.