Blog 8

On Friday, a group of friends and myself headed down to the Charles Theater to see Miss Potter. I had never heard of the Charles Theater and was skeptical about going there since it didn’t have the words "AMC" or "Loews" attached to it as so many trusted movie theaters do. But a friend of mine was desperate to see the movie, being a huge Renee Zellweger fan, so the Charles Theater would suffice. When I arrived at the theater, it was already dark, so I didn’t get a good look at the area it was in, but rather jumped out of the cab into the freezing cold and ran straight for the door. Once inside, I was surprised at how "un-movie theater" it was. It seemed like I had stepped back in time, to an era before electronic ticketing and jumbo popcorn loaded with artificial butter. I tried to buy my ticket with a credit card, but they weren't accepted at the Charles Theater, another hint at the separation from the modern world. The walls were brick, which surprised me because movie theaters are usually new and mass produced, with little time to lay bricks. Little café tables were set up in front of the window facing the street, with artistic looking graduate students in knee-length peacoats sprinkled throughout the lobby. This however didn’t surprise me, because the majority of the movies playing at the Charles Theater were intellectual, independent movies like The Lives of Others and God Grew Tired Of Us: The Story of Lost Boys of Sudan; movies that the typical self-absorbed, superficial college student trapped in the Loyola Bubble would never want to see.
In researching the Charles Theater, I found that before becoming a theater, it was a cable car barn, a bus barn, a library for the blind and then a ballroom. When it became a movie theater in 1939, it only contained one screen as opposed to the five screening rooms it has now. It's easy to see all of these previous lives of the Charles Theater. The high ceilings and spacious floors almost make it feel like a wharehouse capable of housing cars and buses. Also, I could almost see a dance floor in front of the concession stand, where people danced to a live band when it was the Famous Ballroom.
There was something so alluring about the Charles Theater and the time period it had been constructed in. I almost felt as if i was living in 1939, going to a picture show for the first time. Had I seen Miss Potter at normal movie theater, my experience just wouldn't have been the same. There was something new and exciting about sitting in such an old, stuffy building, in uncomfortable chairs. I had grown so accustomed to the cushioned rocking chairs of theaters like Loews. However, this is what made the experience so enjoyable.
After the movie, my friends and I decided it was time to go back to our dorms, since we didn't really want to be hanging around North Charles Street after dark. However, upon exiting the theater, we saw Sofi's Crepes, which was the cutest little crepe cafe I've ever seen. I urged all my friends to go in and we had a late snack of the most delicious crepes.
While waiting for a cab, I looked up and down the surrounding streets, just to get a feel for the neighborhood. Although it was dark, I saw little shops up and down the streets. I made a mental note to return to this are in the daylight to experience all it has to offer. I know it sounds like a cliche, but the Charles Theater and Sofi's Crepes are a real treasure in Baltimore. It was a step away from the typical hustle and bustle of Baltimore and I hope to do it again sometime.