To step through the doors of Dallas’ historic Texas Theater is to take a step back in time. Cool in the Autumn heat, the cavernous lobby beckons to weary cinephiles, welcoming them to partake of a theatergoing experience before corporate branding became the norm.
A Brief History of the Texas Theater
A far cry from the anonymous, brutalist megaplexes that crept across the American heartland in the 1990s, the Texas Theater boasts two auditoriums. The newer one is an intimate affair, repurposed from the original balcony and serving as the centerpiece of a unique second story that features plush lounge areas for patrons to relax between shows, decorated with vintage photography from Dallas’ midcentury glory days.
Downstairs, the original auditorium invites movie lovers to take in a film in the same place where Lee Harvey Oswald was arrested following the JFK assassination- in a previous life, when I was occasionally tasked with giving visiting writers and directors an ad-hoc “welcome to cinematic Dallas” tour, I could show you the exact spot were Oswald got his ass kicked by DPD not for gunning down the US President but, rather, his refusal to pay for a ticket.
Like many indie operations of its type, the Texas Theater has gone on its own heroes’ journey: from cozy neighborhood theater to bona fide Times Square-style grindhouse (its reputation as a hub of prostitution made it prime hunting grounds in the 80s for Charles Albright, “The Dallas Eyeball Killer”) to a tragic relic of the past and back again. The incarnation you’ll encounter should you walk through the doors today—the cozy one, the safe one, the one where you can scope out the legendary Oak Cliff Film Festival or catch a Cronenberg revival on 35mm—is one that pays homage to the past while bringing the theatergoing experience into the modern day.
Enter The Video Crypt
Resurrected by Aviation Cinemas in 2010, the theater—which has operated under the auspices of Barak Epstein, Aviation’s CEO and a peak cinephile—is now a nexus point for past and present, a place where local movie lovers, young, old, and young at heart, can occupy all eras of moviegoing at once. Much of the year, that entails revival screenings. However, when the sunlight wanes and Texas afternoons take on that signature ochre glow that positively screams “autumnal,” a corner of the Texas Theater transforms itself into utterly unique: The Video Crypt.
“We heard about an art installation that used VHS tapes,” says Chad Pierce, Texas Theater Projectionist and, along with fellow employee Vianca Vega, co-founder of a unique artist’s co-op. “Vega and I went to see it, and it was just like… a pile of VHS tapes on the ground. That got us thinking about what an art installation that really used VHS tapes could look like.”
Chad says this to me in the Texas Theater booth, where he works doing something very unusual for a theater in 2025: running an honest-to-God film projector, alternating DCPs with authentic 35mm film, some of which Pierce must prep himself for exhibition in the age of digital film. On occasion, he’s even had to add his own cigarette burns for reel-changeovers in those instances where prints have only ever been shown as massive reels on more contemporary platter-system projectors. This is how I know I’m in serious hands.
Designing The Video Crypt’s Aesthetic
After some brainstorming, Pierce and Vega (who runs the theater box office) conceptualized The Video Crypt, an interactive art installation scheduled to coincide with the Halloween season and to be located in one of the Texas Theater’s disused office spaces, which functions as a community art space part of the year (during film festivals, it also serves as the press lounge).
While other artists have attempted to recreate the corporatized video-going experience of a “Blockbuster night,” Pierce says it was important to deliver something that was perhaps a bit more personal for North Texas residents and other Middle American residents: a revival of the long-lost mom-and-pop video shop.
The Video Crypt has less in common with the polished, corporatized, mass-appeal glitz of a chain video store offering 20 copies of the latest blockbuster and more in common with one-room storefronts with “ADULTS ONLY” sections and tanning facilities in the back. Having drawn a sizable crowd in its first year, Video Crypt has quickly become a Dallas Halloween institution, now enjoying its fourth year in operation.
“We have an old tower PC with a functioning POS system and scanner,” Pierce smiles proudly as he gives me a tour of the Crypt-in-progress at the end of September. Keeping with the spirit of the endeavor, the elements have been sourced from a variety of former video stores: A set of old Family Video shelves, salvaged from the trash heap following the last video store’s closure, serve as the display racks.
Sourcing Tapes From The Dallas VHS Swap
Meanwhile, Pierce and Vega sourced a variety of cardboard standees and posters from real old video-shop proprietors. In some instances, the standees are just now being opened, free at last to breathe fresh air and live again amongst the VHS. When it came time to source those tapes, help came from another venerable Texas institution: The Dallas VHS Swap, an organization that hosts monthly swap-meets for video collectors and which is hosted across the metroplex in locations ranging from Alamo Drafthouse to local breweries. The brainchild of Eli Luna, the VHS Swap proved the perfect partners for Video Crypt.
“I miss the video store and how it was a center for joy,” says Luna. “While streaming makes watching movies very convenient, it does not have the communal space where you can meet like-minded fans of cinema and share their thoughts on the films you find in the aisle. Also, having a knowledgeable video store clerk can also help you find something to your tastes by asking questions and having a conversation, and while an algorithm can do some of this, a personal touch of someone learning your viewing tastes can lead to some deep cuts that may not be available on streaming platforms.”
In keeping with that ethos, The Video Crypt will feature a revolving door of “store employees,” volunteer docents versed in the history and ethos of the video store who will work in shifts throughout October to show patrons around the installation and even “check out” tapes (just be sure to drop them in the return slot!)
What’s Happening This October?
Having opened just in time for October, the Video Crypt will run through October, and tie into a variety of Halloween activities brought to the community in partnership with Dread Central and local Texas partners.
On October 18, the theater will play Elvira: Mistress of the Dark in conjunction with a drag show hosted by May May’s Nightmares. Then, October 20 sees the return of the Texas Film Cult Short Horror Film competition. October 21 will feature a special VHS Swap in the lobby of the theater. To wrap things up, on Halloween night, a 7 PM to 7 AM Joe Bob Briggs marathon. Through it all, Video Crypt will be fully operational upstairs and ready to take patrons back to the past.
Depending how the future goes, eager patrons may have more opportunities for nostalgia tripping throughout the year.
“I would love to have more pop-ups of the Video Crypt in the Dallas area throughout the year, providing people with the video store experience that brings joy,” says Luna. “Maybe we could do a summer edition with ‘animal attack’ films, action flicks, or vacation films.”
The Video Crypt will be operational during Texas Theater hours for the month of October. Please check the Texas Theater Website for showtimes and box office information.
Follow Video Crypt and Texas Theater on Instagram at @videocrypttx and @texastheatre
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