Some say it’s wrong in principle to hold lectures in a movie theatre.
But for Ryerson students, free movie passes and a student discount are helping to sweeten campus reviews for a new digital movie complex that will double as a lecture centre.
“Of course it’s inexcusable, given what we pay for education, (to) hold classes in a movie theatre,” said Nora Loreto, head of the student union at Ryerson.
“But, hey, for the social life of our students, it’s great, and they’re offering some perks.”
Ryerson will hold morning lectures in half the 24 theatres in the AMC multiplex located in the Toronto Life Square building at Yonge Street and Dundas Street.
AMC will let Ryerson students into movies free this weekend and give them a $2 discount on tickets next year.
The shared use of the theatre spaces was a provision in a deal reached a decade ago, in which Ryerson allowed AMC Canada to build above its parking garage.
Ryerson went to the movies in 2003 during the double cohort crunch, scheduling classes in the nearby Carlton Cinemas.
But this time, the dual purpose has been planned from the start, and there wouldn’t be many of the pitfalls — poor lighting, nowhere to take notes — that had thumbs down about the Carlton classrooms.
