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ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) -A former movie theater in St. Charles County is being redeveloped as a family entertainment complex.<\/p>\n
The former Regal Great Escape Theater closed in 2023 and was put up for sale next to the neighboring Missouri Rush Sports Complex.<\/p>\n
In 2024, a developer purchased the building and decided to redevelop the property, turning the 14-screen theater into complex that will house an independent theater and Level Up Entertainment.<\/p>\n
Tristan Ratterman is the owner of Ratterman Theatres, which shares the building with Level Up. Ratterman preserved three of 14 movie screens, in an effort to create a return to nostalgia and tradition.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe wanted to make sure it felt nostalgic to a whole bunch of generations whether or not you could directly connect it to a memory or just, \u2018oh it\u2019s just like I see it in the movies,\u2019\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The theatre will show both first run movies and classics. It officially opened last Friday, showing Wicked: For Good in each of its theatres, with plans for Zootopia 2 in the coming weeks.<\/p>\n
The theatre features a historic style marquee, along with beloved movie concessions. $15 gets movie-goers a ticket, popcorn and a soda.<\/p>\n
\u201cGo out and enjoy it, it\u2019s a public experience, there\u2019s nothing like it,\u201d said Ratterman. \u201cWe\u2019ve got a bigger screen, its 25 feet tall and 50 feet wide, nobody has that size tv, you can\u2019t get that at home!\u201d<\/p>\n
Movie-goers can enjoy the music of a live organist before the showing begins, courtesy of Terry Nord.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople can actually come in, hear the organ play, and to me the excitement of hearing the organ play just adds to the movie experience,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
To help make his dream a reality, Ratterman brought on his friend and cinema engineer Tom Ostertag.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was a lot of deferred maintenance and a lot of issues with the equipment as found,\u201d said Ostertag. \u201cIt\u2019s probably how the theater was operating at the end, with equipment that was going bad, speakers going flaky, so a lot of it was doing maintenance they should have been doing.\u201d<\/p>\n
The complex also includes a smaller theater that can be rented for private events, such as birthday parties or other celebrations.<\/p>\n
Level Up Entertainment will soon join Ratterman Theatres within the Caledonia Entertainment Complex. It will offer two arcades, pickleball, bowling, bumper cars and a restaurant and bar. It plans to open in phases, with construction on the bowling alley nearing completion.<\/p>\n
The complex sits adjacent to the Missouri Rush Sports Park, which attracts nearly 500,000 people every year. A hotel is also under construction nearby.<\/p>\n