Before the invention of 15 movie multi-plexes featuring stylized lobbies, stadium seating,…read moresuper-sized reclining chairs, and full menus, we all went to cinemas like The Cranford Theater. The concession stand sells popcorn, candy, and soda. The seats are small and squeak when you shift position. The rows don't have enough room between them for you to squeeze past seated patrons without banging against their knees. The bathrooms look exactly like the bathrooms in a typical 1970s grammar school. I saw another Yelp reviewer observed that no one under age 50 comes here, and I noticed that too. If the only movie theaters you've been to were built this century, then an old cinema like this one would be a shock. I doubt anyone born since 1990 would tolerate sitting for three hours in this dated theater. Parking is a problem. We parked on the street a few blocks away and walked because the tiny lot in front of the movie theater was already full, even though we were about 20 minutes early. Despite being an old theater, the actual sound and screen projection of the movie is fine. This cinema does get the latest releases and shows them at convenient times, including matinees. It's got a prime location downtown within walking distance of many places to buy food and drinks. Look for discount ticket prices on certain days and times.

New vision is no longer Running the Cranford theater. They were just leasing it from the owners …read more Now the owners have taken over and did a wonderful renovation back in the end of 2019. New seats and carpeting along with other changes have made this a really great theater. They have classic movies once a month and other special events around Halloween and Christmas time. It was great coming to see the original Halloween movie from 1978 they even had a drive in in the back parking lot when the indoor theater was closed in 2020 The Staff are very friendly and helpful. The screens are of a good size for a multiplex crystal clear projection and great sound. Definitely come down and support this movie theater in the wonderful downtown of Cranford New Jersey. Get something to eat in one of the good restaurants before after the movie. Too many independent theaters in New Jersey have closed over the past few years. Definitely come out and support this great theater .Doreen Sayegh along with her father work really hard making this a great place to see a movie.

Do not go here if you want to enjoy a movie without rap and music playing in the background. Do not…read morego here if you want to enjoy a movie without old pop corn at the bottom of your feet. Do not go here if you want to actually sit through the movie with out having to get up to tell the workers that the music they're playing for their event is TOO loud.

I was here last weekend to view The Beekeeper. The stadium theater itself is fine - obviously they…read morehave stadium style seating. A big plus for me. It was a nice sized theater although my companion who was seeing a separate film at the same time had his theater changed on him without notice and it was into a much smaller room, so staff ended up handing out free ticket comps to patrons in that theater. The front desk was not in use. Instead, a sign was placed directing your to place your ticket orders at the concession stand. As it was early, not much was started and honestly, it was a bit bare. The fountain machines were not working. I will say however that they fried up some hot, delicious chicken wings. It was better than I ever expected and it was fresh. Bathrooms were clean as the theater had just opened. Staff was nice enough. I would bring my family here for an early show to avoid having to hike it over to AMC Jersey Gardens. It's not my first choice, but it would do because of how easy it is to get here.

9/26/25: Beautifully structured building located in South Orange Village. The center contains 425…read morecomfortable seats. It was my very first visit. Excellent acoustics and visibility. We came to see Masters of The Telecaster ft. Truly excellent guitarists who played with some of the greats! The center has a small concession with alcohol and snacks. The venue has clean bathrooms. The facility has excellent parking. There's also street and municipal parking. Lots of police presence in the area. Lots of great restaurants within steps of this venue. In fact, we had stopped for a great dinner at Gaslight Brewery.

We were recently back at SOPAC for an intimate concert of two different solo artists. We were…read moreseated in essentially the same seats as last time, but two rows closer to the stage. The seating was perfect; the theater was clean; and the sound was fantastic. It was certainly different having those types of movie-theater like seats for a concert, but, due to the calming nature of the two musicians, it still worked. However, there were definitely patrons that were treating it like a loud, standing room venue that were animatedly talking throughout most of the show. Despite their distractions, it was another excellent experience!

We've seen a number of shows at Chatham Playhouse, mostly musicals, and this theater is always a…read morestep up from most local theaters in terms of quality. However the current drama Things I Know To Be True that we saw this weekend was several steps up even from that. Six actors on a mostly empty stage in a ln extremely powerful family drama. All the actors playing the grown children were strong (especially the actress playing the youngest daughter Rosie) and all had moving monologues. But the actors playing the parents, Fran and Bob took our breath away. Incredible, realistic acting that is better than most broadway shows we've seen. Their performances were electric and had us on the edge of our seats. Highly recommended.

Adorable little neighborhood theater with local participation. Good sight lines and acoustics…read more Walk to a large choice of restaurants as well.

If you are tired of megaplexes with massive crowds then give this "community-like" feel theatre a…read moregood look. We really enjoyed watching Godzilla with cozy feel, very good sound system and rather comfortable seats. The concession stand had no lines, very reasonable prices, and overall a very friendly ambience. Carpets and amenities were recently upgraded and they are very much open for business (unlike what Yelp status indicates). Parking on street or at the trains station across. Plenty of spots the day we went but I suspect some planning may be required during busy times or new releases.

The theater was we purchased about a year ago and the new owner, Chris is amazing. He goes over and…read morebeyond to service you. The theater has three separate theaters and the seats are comfortable. I recommend going there. This is the only place we go now.

Great classes, teacher, performances! I had a good time taking improv classes here and performing…read morein class shows!

This place is great and offers a variety of resources for adults, teens, tweens, and kids. Between…read morethe corporate workshops, improv classes, and musical theater the school is sure to meet your needs whatever they may be. Angelique is great.

Beyond personally experiencing the abandonment of delightful local theaters like the Utopia in…read moreQueens, I'm infuriated by events like New Haven, population 135,081 per Google, losing its only theater. The Cranford Theater is an honorable holdout in the war against AMC nonsense, even more important because of its relative proximity to the nauseating Route 22. A ticket to The Holdovers was a reasonable $13.75, and it's delightful to see a place that avoided the pointless reserved seat bandwagon. The young guy selling tickets was quick and friendly. Fellow explorers of inner-ring suburbs should note that Cranford is closer than you might think and the theater is minutes away from the train station. (For my next coffeehouse open mic performance I plan to read the first two sentences of this review in the voice of the Paul Giamatti character from Holdovers).

The New Branford Theatre was opened on November 29, 1926 and over the decades its ownership and…read morename have changed several times. Eventually it settled on the name "Cranford Theater". In 2017, New Visions theaters took over and it seemed like it may have been a bright new chapter in the theater's history. However, in September 2019 the theater was unceremoniously shuttered and many fans of this wonderful downtown area in New Jersey were left to wonder if their beloved theater would ever play to audiences again. Fast forward to November 8, 2019 and the Cranford Theater has reopened! This time out it is owned by the folks who own the property. They did not just dust off what was there and open back up. Instead, the entire theater has undergone a renovation. New lighting, projectors, seats, carpeteting, a new concession stand and even a "mobile" box office station are all part of this treatment. The blue, gold and silver colors incorporated into the theater are intended to align with some of the colors that represent Cranford itself, making for a theater that truly wants to be part of the community. The theater is full of friendly staff and courteous, local patrons who all seem to know each other (I have watched entire rows of people chatting with each other like old friends). The new seats are very comfortable and have a nice high back. There are several screens divided in a space that once only showed one movie so this is not the place to look for an IMAX or Dolby experience. However as someone who goes to movies often I had zero problem with the screen size and sound quality. You may not want to see "Star Wars" here, but a film like "Joker" or "Last Christmas" is just fine on these screens. I am very happy Cranford Theater has made a return to the neighborhood and I have every intention of supporting it as much as I can.

We went to our first performance last night of this all volunteer theater and saw Talk Radio. The…read moreperformance was quite professional and we both enjoyed it a lot. The cast, crew and audience were all excellent. Plus its a whole lot easier and less expensive than the other theater options. The seats were all close to the stage and the experience was very intimate. The set was really good. The theater was quite nice and the parking, EZ. It's definitely worth checking out.