The Showboat of Lyons in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin has been sold to Michigan-based Emagine Entertainment, Inc. The theater, which closed in September 2017, will be transformed into a luxury theater, according to a recent article published in the Lake Geneva Regional News:

Patrons of the former Showboat movie theater complex near Lake Geneva are about to discover what luxury movie-going is all about.

Michigan-based Emagine Entertainment Inc. has purchased the old theater property, with plans to transform it into an updated and upscale movie attraction.

New recliner seats, improved sound systems, and pizza delivered to your seat are among the features that Emagine intends to introduce when the multiplex theater reopens, possibly this summer.

"We have big plans," Emagine co-founder and chairman Paul Glantz said. "It will be a venue that I think the community will be proud of."

Click the Read link below to view the full article.

This will be Emagine's first location in Wisconsin. It currently operates 17 theaters in Michigan, Minnesota, and Illinois. Whether this purchase means that Emagine will be looking at additional expansion into the state is the subject of some interesting speculation. Consolidating some of the independent operations in the state could provide the company with some reasonable competition with the Marcus Theatres Corporation, which is the dominant player in Wisconsin. Marcus' closest location is the Marcus Ridge Cinemas, which is about 35 minutes away in New Berlin.

Moviegoers in the Lake Geneva area currently have the Geneva Theater in Lake Geneva and the Plaza Theater in Burlington, and this news heralds the introduction of luxury amenities to an area quite popular as a tourist destination.

Thanks to reader Ron H. for passing along this news!

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