Royal Oak’s Emagine theatre will reopen on Friday, June 19 — despite not being able to legally do so under Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s statewide reopening plan — for a weeklong festival highlighting Black cinema and films that present “compelling moral stories” about race in America and Black history in honor of Juneteenth.
Though Whitmer gave the green light for drive-in theaters to resume operations when she lifted the state’s stay-at-home order and implemented looser restrictions on outdoor gatherings on June 1, the executive order prohibiting indoor movie theaters and entertainment venues is still in effect.
Last month, Dearborn’s Ford-Wyoming Drive-in attempted to reopen before Whitmer gave the go-ahead and was hit with a cease-and-desist the night of its reopening.