A fresh breeze from a traditional movie theater

Apr 15, 2009
By Jana Belugina

TALLINN - A trip to the movie theater has become so commonplace that it seems impossible to find someone who has never been there. For most Tallinn residents, the cinema is a part of everyday – or more specifically every weekend – life. It has become a regular activity, like going to the gym or meeting for lunch with a best friend once a week.

For most of the cinema visitors it might look like some form of immutable entertainment – aside from the movies themselves, what can be new about the cinema, except the taste of popcorn or a new sort of candy at the counter?
Every movie theater is working hard to find new ways of granting pleasure to visitors with constant cooperation with media producers and innovative developments that can be implemented in the cinemas, and Tallinn’s main movie theater is not an exception.

Coca Cola Plaza, just like the soft drink it is named after, is extremely popular among locals and stands very solidly on the local entertainment scene. The hard work of the managing team doesn’t stop surprising its public and introducing something new on a regular basis.

One example is the possibility to see live transmissions of Metropolitan Opera performances. This is definitely a unique opportunity for those who value operas. Just imagine the value of this present for those who enjoy watching world famous performances recorded on their TV, or had to plan far in advance in order to book the tickets and arrange trips to premieres at famous opera houses.

Of course some can argue that visiting an opera is a ritual, a chance to dip into a special atmosphere of mystery and magnificence. Yet where else can someone leave their house in Tallinn and within half an hour be sitting in a comfortable armchair, holding a glass of wine and enjoying a performance taking place across the Atlantic in the most widely known opera company in the world. There is something to think of.
Considering that Coca Cola Plaza transmits the entire season of the Metropolitan Opera, the inveterate operagoers are able to select those performances that are most interesting for them.

The next opera, scheduled for May 23, is La Cenerentola by Rossini. Running for three full hours with one intermission, visiting this show could make for an untraditional evening spent in a movie theater.
Another very popular new feature in Coca Cola Plaza is 3D film transmissions, which were introduced in the past year but are just gaining strength now. More and more films and state of the art cartoons are produced for 3D viewing, and this in turn means that cinemas have to be ready and fully equipped for demonstrations.
If the films are not viewed through special glasses, then they appear blurry – making it necessary to see the films in the theater, instead of downloading them at home.

This year the theater plans to show 11 new 3D films, among them some long awaited animations such as Monsters vs. Aliens, Ice Age  3 and Final Destination 4.
The theater has a number of other specialties in addition to the opera performances and 3D viewing.

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