(Chatham, NY, August 29, 2024) — After an extensive search process, Brian Edward Leach has been named Executive Director of the Crandell Theatre in Chatham, New York. On Thursday, September 12, from 5 – 7 pm, Leach will be welcomed by the community at the Columbia County Chamber of Commerce’s monthly Business After Hours reception hosted by the Crandell. The event is free and open to the public. Attendees will enjoy light refreshments and learn more about the Crandell’s upcoming renovation. Reservations are recommended and can be made by visiting https://crandelltheatre.org/film/crandell-open-house-reception/ or calling 518-392-3445. Leach has extensive background in arts administration, programming, fundraising, and marketing for arts organizations. He was previously Managing Director of the Colonial Theatre in Westerly, Rhode Island, and Marketing Director of PICT Classic Theatre and Pittsburgh Festival Opera. Earlier, he served as Curator of the art…
Actor and Filmmaker Griffin Dunne in Person at the Crandell on August 10
(Chatham, NY, July 23, 2024) — The Crandell Theatre’s popular event series, Crandell LIVE!, will welcome actor and filmmaker Griffin Dunne for a screening and post-show Q&A on August 10 at 7 pm. Known for his starring roles in iconic films like An American Werewolf in London and After Hours, he will discuss the evening’s featured documentary, Joan Didion: The Center Will Not Hold, the Emmy-nominated film he directed about his aunt, the literary legend. In addition to the film, he will be discussing his bestselling family memoir The Friday Afternoon Club, published by Penguin Random House in June. Crandell Executive Director Brian Edward Leach will interview Dunne and moderate questions from the audience. Griffin Dunne has been an actor, producer, and director since the late 1970s, when he landed his first role in The Other Side of the Mountain.…
CatVideoFest 2024: Making You Laugh for Kitties in Need
(Chatham, NY, July 18, 2024) — They’re baaaaack! The historic single-screen Crandell Theatre on Main Street in Chatham is delighted to partner with the Columbia-Greene Humane Society to present the world’s #1 cat video festival, CatVideoFest 2024, on August 3 at 1 pm.* Come watch the silliest, most adorable cat videos of the year and learn more about adoptable area kittens and cats currently sheltering at CGHS. Presented by Oscilloscope Laboratories, CatVideoFest 2024 is a compilation of the latest and best cat videos culled from countless hours of unique submissions and sourced animations, music videos, and classic internet powerhouses. Each year, across the country, local theaters partner with nearby cat-focused charities, animal welfare associations and shelters alike. A portion of ticket proceeds from the Crandell screening will be donated to Columbia-Greene Humane Society. Critics agree: watching silly cat videos is…
Filmmaker James Schamus in Conversation at the Crandell Theatre on July 12
(Chatham, NY, July 1, 2024) — Oscar-nominated filmmaker James Schamus, well-known for his longtime collaboration with Director Ang Lee and the range of his creative roles across feature film and television, will headline the theater’s next Crandell LIVE! event on July 12. Beginning with the 7 pm screening of We Grown Now, which Schamus produced, the evening will conclude with a discussion of Director Minhal Baig’s acclaimed film and an audience Q&A. We Grown Now follows 12-year-old best friends Malik and Eric in 1992 Chicago as they discover the joys and hardships of growing up in the infamous Cabrini-Green public housing complex (now demolished). They idolize Michael Jordan, compete in jumping contests, and play hooky at the Art Institute. When a shooting in the community challenges everything they know and love, they must face the realities of growing up fast.…
Crandell Theatre to Host Jane Austen Summer Matinee Series in July
(Chatham, NY, June 27, 2024) — The historic single-screen Crandell Theatre will bring a bit of the English countryside to Chatham’s Main Street in July with the continuation of its Jane Austen Summer Matinee Series. Featuring beloved film adaptations of the author’s work, the series will screen matinees of Emma. and Pride & Prejudice on two Saturdays in July at 1 pm. To reserve Jane Austen Summer Series tickets, visit https://crandelltheatre.org/. About the Films Emma. (2020): Come see the softer sides of Anya Taylor-Joy and Mia Goth, and the sillier sides of Josh O’Connor and Bill Nighy, in this colorful remake by Director Autumn de Wilde. O’Connor (My Chimera, Challengers), who filmed this role just before he debuted in his BAFTA-nominated role as Prince Charles on The Crown, is terrific as the handsome and shifty Mr. Elton. Taking a page…
Crandell Theatre to Screen Iconic Films in Hollywood Summer Nights Series
(Chatham, NY, June 25, 2024) — The historic single-screen Crandell Theatre on Main Street in Chatham will screen a series of iconic films that originally dazzled at the box office and went on to become treasured, perennial classics. Beginning on Friday, July 5, at 7 pm with Jaws — the summer blockbuster that started them all — Hollywood Summer Nights will run throughout July and August. The series will also include such fan favorites as Saturday Night Fever, The Big Lebowski, Dirty Dancing, Pulp Fiction, Star Wars Episode IV – A New Hope (the updated Special Edition), The Godfather, Jurassic Park and Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery. These films will screen in addition to our regular weekend programming of new releases. Another recent blockbuster, Minions, will screen at 10 am on July 13 for FREE during the annual Chatham…
Uncropped, One of the Year’s Best Docs, Screening and Filmmaker Q&A
Q&A with Director D.W. Young and Composer David Ullmann to follow the screening (Chatham, NY, May 15, 2024)—On Friday, June 7, the historic Crandell Theatre will screen the acclaimed new documentary Uncropped, about the work of legendary Village Voice photographer and photojournalist James Hamilton. Praised by critics as a rich and absorbing must-see and one of the best documentaries of the year, the film is a visual feast of Hamilton’s indelible images and the eras they represent. Following Friday night’s show, Director D.W. Young and locally-based composer David Ullmann will take the stage for a Crandell Live! Q&A, moderated by Filmmaker and Crandell Board Member Mirissa Neff. James Hamilton is one of the great chroniclers of the cultural history of America. For over four decades working as a staff photographer at publications such as Harper’s Bazaar, The New York Observer…
A Message from the Executive Director
Dear Crandell Community, I am writing to let you know that I have made the difficult decision to step down as Executive Director of the Crandell Theatre to pursue personal interests (i.e., retirement!). March 29th will be my last official day. A search by the Crandell’s board for the next person to assume the position is already underway. As the Crandell enters these final months of fundraising to complete the renovation and restoration of our beloved, nearly 100-year-old historic theater, it is the ideal time for a new era of leadership to steer us into our next iteration of the independent, community-based nonprofit cinema you know and love. It’s an understatement to say that it has been a true honor to have played a role in growing the Crandell’s nonprofit organization over the last twelve years. When I started, ticket…
Killer Films Producers Christine Vachon and Pam Koffler to Be Honored at FilmColumbia 2023
Saturday, October 21
Save the Date! Killer Films Producers Christine Vachon and Pam Koffler to be honored at FilmColumbia 2023 Festival Kick-Off Party Benefitting the Crandell Theatre’s Operations + Programs Saturday, October 21, 2023, 6 – 8 pm Home of Jack Shear, Spencertown, NY $250 per person (invitations will be sent week of September 18) FilmColumbia, the Crandell’s premier annual cultural event, will this year honor groundbreaking producers Christine Vachon and Pam Koffler, the founders of Killer Films. According to James Schamus, award-winning filmmaker and Crandell Theatre board member, “It is no understatement to say that the history of American independent cinema would simply not exist in its currently recognizable form without the work of Killer Films producers Christine Vachon and Pam Koffler. Killer’s range includes their work with Todd Haynes (from his early masterpieces Superstar and Poison through his mature triumphs…
National Cinema Day
This Sunday: 8/27/23
If you haven’t seen Oppenheimer yet and crave a bargain, come to the Crandell on Sunday at a ticket price not seen since the late 1980s. That’s right, a mere $4 gets you in to see a mighty big film on our historic single screen. National Cinema Day was a huge success when it debuted last year and the Crandell is thrilled to participate again this summer! 12:30 PM and 4 PM SHOWS ONLY $4
Succession Star Brian Cox in Conversation at the Crandell
July 6
(Chatham, NY, June 20, 2023)—The Crandell Theatre is thrilled to announce that celebrated Succession star Brian Cox will join FilmColumbia’s Peter Biskind live on stage for a special Q+A on Thursday, July 6, at 7 pm to benefit the renovation and restoration of Chatham’s historic theater. Cox and Biskind will discuss Cox’s Succession character, media titan Logan Roy, and the staggering success of the acclaimed HBO series. Tickets are $25 per person. All proceeds from the event will benefit the restoration fund. When Succession debuted in 2018 it became a cultural phenomenon across four riveting seasons. Created by Jesse Armstrong, the series also stars Jeremy Strong, Sarah Snook, Matthew Macfadyen and Kieran Culkin. Cox’s portrayal of Roy, the family patriarch, earned him a Primetime Emmy nomination, a Golden Globe Award and a legion of new fans. Nearly 3 million tuned…