Editor’s Note: “Mountain Movie Palaces” is an 828newsNOW miniseries spotlighting the independent movie theaters of Western North Carolina. From historic, single-screen arthouse theaters to unique, independently-operated multiplexes, we seek to celebrate the community of cinema through these feature stories.

BOONE, N.C. (828newsNOW) — The Appalachian Theatre of the High Country is a multi-performing arts venue located in the downtown district of Boone, North Carolina. With over 80 years of history, the theater has almost as many stories to its name as movies it has shown. Learn more in our latest “Mountain Movie Palaces” feature.

Theater features

Location: 559 W. King St., Boone, N.C.
Hours: Vary by event
Number of screens: One
Number of seats: 629
Number of staff: 30
Type of theater: Repertory/Event

The main auditorium of the Appalachian Theatre of the High Country.
Balcony seats overlooking the auditorium of the Appalachian Theatre of the High Country.

Now playing: An Appalachian historical epic

You would be forgiven for thinking the Appalachian Theatre of the High Country was a relic of the 1930s. The iconic teal-and-black movie palace, located on King Street in Boone, N.C., appears largely the same as it did in November 1938, when the theater opened its doors for screenings of now-obscure titles like “Young Dr. Kildare” (1938, 82 min., directed by Harold S. Bucquet) and “The Great Waltz” (1938, 104 min., directed by Julien Duvivier).

Looks can be deceiving. The Appalachian Theatre has had a long and tumultuous history, changing hands, brands and plans over and over again across eight decades.

From 1982-2007, for instance, the theater was known as the Appalachian Twin. In 2007, it closed its doors completely. It wouldn’t be until October 2019 that the newly-christened Appalachian Theatre of the High Country was reborn as a performing arts space. Even then, the reopening was hampered by the Covid-19 pandemic just a few months later. The Appalachian Theatre has endured a lot in 88 years.

Even so, the theater continues to be a lively player in the local arts scene, hosting live music, staging live theater and screening movies for live audiences from Boone and beyond.

A photo of the Appalachian Theatre in 1938.
A photo of the Appalachian Theatre in 1948.
A photo of the vacant Appalachian Theatre in 2011.
An early program for the A photo of the Appalachian Theatre.

Since reopening, the movie theater has leaned into “theater” more than “movie.”

“The nature of our venue is a multi-performing arts venue, and so, film is not our top priority,” explained Jason Deathridge, director of patron services at the Appalachian Theatre. 
”Live events and live programming is more our focus in our current model.”

A very old seat from an earlier incarnation of the Appalachian Theatre now resides in its lobby.
The carpet pattern of the present Appalachian Theatre is intended to emulate the pattern of a much older incarnation.
The wall sconces in the main auditorium of the Appalachian Theatre are modeled after ones decades older.

However, film is still a major building block of the Appalachian Theatre event calendar.

“We still love doing film because it is a cornerstone of the history and what we do,” Deathridge said. “Particularly classics and the favorites. That’s what people really enjoy.”

The theater regularly screens repertory titles, like Alfred Hitchcock films during an autumnal “Hitchcock-tober” series, or the original “Star Wars” trilogy around May 4. Film festivals and documentaries are also marquee mainstays, though with these, there is usually a greater emphasis on regional relevancy.

Films, live music and special events make up the calendar of the Appalachian Theatre.
The concession counter in the lobby of the Appalachian Theatre.

“We know where we are. We know we’re in Boone. We know that people come here and love nature and love the outdoors,” Deathridge said. “Adventure sports and things like that. And so, that audience is really cool and excited to come see some of these.”

For example, the annual Boone Docs Film Festival brings short documentaries about the Appalachian region to the Appalachian Theatre. The IF4 International Fly Fishing Film Festival will celebrate Appalachian anglers from all angles on Friday, May 1. Other film festivals at the theater have platformed environmental sustainability, skiing and more.

Such breadth of programming allows for smaller, weirder fare, too. Craig Fischer, a film professor at Appalachian State University, is the founder of Toy Sheep Microcinema, a series of cult and experimental films screened in the theater’s upstairs community room.

“Anything that’s not mainstream, anything that’s weird, that’s my remit,” Fischer explained. “I have two rules that I try to follow. 
One, don’t try to show anything that’s too typical, and two, try to pair it with something, even at the event itself, that makes it a unique experience for people.”

A promotional flyer for “Don’t Let the Riverbeast Get You!,” the May 1 screening at the Toy Sheep Microcinema.
The community room of the Appalachian Theatre, the home of Toy Sheep Microcinema events.

Previous Toy Sheep events have included screenings of cult flicks like “Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!” (1965, 83 min., directed by Russ Meyer) and “Threads” (1984, 117 min., directed by Mick Jackson), as well as interactive attractions, like a live punk concert following a music documentary or a bingo game set to an experimental alphabet film.

While artists who license their off-the-wall work receive compensation from Toy Sheep, the microcinema events are always free for the moviegoing public.

“I want to keep it free because I think, you know, maximum accessibility. Plus, I’m asking people to come see stuff that they won’t necessarily like. They have to come on faith, you know?” Fischer laughed.

Two men stand on a brick sidewalk in front of a theater marquee, smiling and waving at the camera.
Jason Deathridge, left, and Craig Fischer, right, pose with a Toy Sheep Microcinema event on the marquee of the Appalachian Theatre of the High Country.

Variety is key to The Appalachian Theatre. The theater shows Toy Sheep events and hosts bluegrass bands. The theater puts on “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” and screens fly fishing films. Across 88 years, the theater has been continually rebuilt, restructured, reconfigured or reimagined.

Nonetheless, two things about the Appalachian Theatre seem to be constants:

  1. The theater is at the heart of Boone, N.C.
  2. It’s not going anywhere.

For more information about upcoming Appalachian Theatre events, including the IF4 film festival and the next Toy Sheep screening, “Don’t Let the Riverbeast Get You!,” on Friday, May 1, visit www.apptheatre.org/events-and-tickets.

Read previous “Mountain Movie Palaces” stories: