New Sewickley theater to open Feb. 17

The Tull Family Theater, Sewickley’s long-awaited independent movie house, will open its doors on Feb. 17.

The theater on Walnut Street will offer two screening rooms – one with seating for 77 patrons and the other with seating for 169.

The bigger of the two will include a stage available for presentations. In addition, the theater will contain a flexible space known as the Esmark and Bouchard Family Community Room available for events like comedy and musical acts, classes and private rentals.

While the opening films have not been announced yet, the theater’s website lists “Jackie,” “Manchester by the Sea” and “Lion” as films that are coming soon.

“We will have the kind of films that everyone is talking about, like the first-runs and Oscar nominees, but also other indie films, classics, quality cultural programming, foreign films and documentaries,” said Carolina Pais-Barreto Beyers, executive director of the Tull Family Theater.

“Later in the year, we will celebrate with a big event,” she said.

The theater’s special programming will run each month. Tuesdays will be Classic Tuesdays, with Hollywood classics showing on the first Tuesday of every month and int e r n a t i o n a l classics screening on the third Tuesday of each month. Classic Tuesdays kicks off with “To Kill a Mockingbird” on March 7.

Cultural Screenings, showcasing films with music, art and dance from around the globe, will show on the third Thursday of each month.

Beginning March 11, the theater will screen familyfriendly films on the second and fourth Saturdays of each month.

The idea for the Tull Family Theater was born in 2011, when a group of Sewickley leaders had the dream of opening a nonprofit theater in the community. They called themselves the Village Theater Company, established a nonprofit and began fundraising. The borough of Sewickley offered a 29-year lease deal on the land.

Once over 400 individuals and families donated more than $1.5 million to the project, the Village Theater Company sought out donations from corporations and businesses, eventually bringing in the $4 million needed for construction and startup fees.

The cinema is named for Alba and Thomas Tull, founder of Legendary Pictures and part-owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Tulls secured the naming rights for the building with a $500,000 donation early in 2016.