Alamo Drafthouse sets June 19 soft opening date

A year and a month after Alamo Drafthouse Cinema confirmed plans to enter Springfield, the Austin, Texas-based theater chain has an opening date. But it’s not the first time.

Calling it a soft opening, Alamo Drafthouse will launch on a limited basis June 19 as staff members are trained through June 24, said spokesman Jonathan King.

The opening follows a series of rescheduled launch dates.

During Springfield Business Journal’s 12 People You Need to Know live interview series last month, Alamo Drafthouse owner John Martin said the theater would open during the second week of June. The 4005 South Ave. theater first was scheduled to open in February, but construction challenges pushed the date back to spring and finally into June.

King said alcohol sales will start Monday, along with discounted food and nonalcoholic drinks. Its in-house restaurant called The Backlot will open in a few weeks, he said.

At the former Campbell 16 Cine, customers will have access to 14 auditoriums ranging in size from 42 to 110 reclining seats. Seven of the 14 will be available this month, with the latter half to open in the near future, according to a news release. The 55,000-square-foot theater is the largest in the company’s 27-cinema chain.

Alamo Springfield will launch with films including “Wonder Woman,” “Transformers: The Last Knight” and “It Comes at Night.”

The employee count, through attrition, will drop to around 175, above the 150 jobs the company expected to create when it announced the theater last year.