The last year has been hard on the Orpheum Theatre in Estevan. There was an enforced closure due to provincial public health orders, then a delayed reopening because of a lack of films to show. Then, after their initial reopening, there was another temporary shutdown when the prohibition against serving food made it more expensive to stay open than to close. Then, in November of last year, that changed as well.

The rollercoaster hasn't come to a full stop for the theatre yet, but there is hope of better days on the horizon. With some more Hollywood releases on the way out, the theatre may start seeing more moviegoers come into their lone operating auditorium again. 

"We're still crawling along, as I'm sure many businesses are right now," said co-owner Jocelyn Dougherty. "We're trying to do our best and we're hoping attendance will start to improve as the vaccines roll out."

One of the big positives, according to Dougherty, is the increase in kids' movies coming out. "Tom and Jerry" is showing at the theatre at the moment, and Disney's "Raya and the Last Dragon" is soon to arrive there, both of which should draw in the younger crowd. That's not to say the theatre is going to be allowed to sell out, however. 

"We are alternating every other row as well as aisle seats," said Dougherty. "We try to keep people six feet apart wherever possible. We're all wearing masks, including our customers, except when they're seated and eating or drinking. We are cleaning and disinfecting between each movie, so we hope people continue to feel safe and comfortable coming out to the movies."

A major turning point for the theatre came with the province reversing their decision to prohibit theatres from serving food. Now that popcorn and other concessions are on sale again, that makes life a little bit easier. 

"That was huge," said Dougherty. "All theatre owners know that the highest percentage of our revenue comes from the concession. The box office is shared with the film companies so we definitely need the concession to keep going."

With new films starting to trickle out and vaccinations on the rise, the theatre ownership and staff are starting to get a bit more optimistic about soldiering ahead. A lot of work is left to do, and there are still many restrictions to lift before things get back to something resembling normal, but there are some steps being taken in the right direction. 

"I think everybody is feeling a bit more optimism with the idea of the vaccines coming out," Dougherty said. "It looks like there's a light at the end of the tunnel."

Dougherty added that another Fast and Furious movie coming out in the summer could be a big one for the theatre, as could the Top Gun sequel.