This Month’s 5 Questions is a composite of historians, artists, and commentators.

Compiled by Dwight Easter

A Brief Intermission: COVID-Style

by Atlanta Daniel & Theresa Schindler, Naro Cinema

When the governor began issuing lockdown orders and banning gatherings of greater than 10, we sat in despair in the Naro Cinema lobby trying to process it all. It was Tuesday afternoon, and we had still been optimistically planning our Friday night FlickIt! showing of “Caddyshack.”

But reality set in with each passing minute, and so did the sadness. We had to phone our employees to break the bad news. We had to alert our customers. We had to update our website and info line, send out an e-newsletter, and post signs on the front doors. All stating what we had not wanted to accept:

“Beginning Friday, March 20th, the Naro Cinema will be closed due to coronavirus regulations.”

Indefinitely.

The darkness hung heavy over our heads that day. We were at a loss, in a daze. Then a tiny spark went off — that’s how most FlickIt! shenanigans begin — and ideas started to fill the room.

What if we opened just for concessions? Things were bad enough, but the thought of life without Naro popcorn was too much. What if we sold the concessions at the front door, not allowing anyone into the building? What if we covered all of our doors and windows with paper, and sold from a little peek-through? And so, The FlickIt! Popcorn Speakeasy was born!

We are open Fridays from 4-8pm and Sundays from Noon-4pm for all of your Naro concession needs.

Since that dreadful Tuesday, we have continued to keep the FlickIt! spirit going as best we can while the theater is closed. We have a weekly changing roster of new films streaming in our Virtual Cinema at narocinema.com. (Thanks to the film distributors, half of your rental fee supports us while we are closed.) We celebrated Pride Month in June with our community sidewalk chalk art project. We organized a month-long fundraiser for local BLM efforts. And we post daily #CoronaMovieOfTheDay suggestions just for the silly hell of it.

While nothing will ever compare with the traditional movie-going experience at your local neighborhood theater — especially if it’s a FlickIt! night — we hope we have at least provided some entertainment for you over the summer. We look forward to the day we can all sit in the Naro together again, enjoying a beer and a laugh and a good time.

You are not only our community, but you are our FlickIt! family, and we miss you so much.

About Dwight Easter: Digital folk artist, family man and bread merchant. Some of the best moments in my life are experiencing the power and influence of great art. I came up in the Norfolk era of the M80’s, Buttsteak, and Antic Hay.