By: Melody Simmons

That’s the fallout as pop culture and wizardry once again invade the tiny box office at the Senator Theatre under new management.

More than 700 tickets have been sold thus far for Thursday’s midnight show of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 at the historic Senator, says Kathleen Cusack, the theater’s new operator. An equal amount have been pre-sold for weekend performances.

“We’re not used to this sort of level of interest,” said Cusack, comparing the ticket sales to the staid art cinema crowd at the family’s other theater, The Charles, downtown. “It is certainly a cultural phenomenon that people seem to take with great seriousness.”

That’s putting it lightly.

Just before midnight, Cusack said she was preparing for hundreds of Potter fans to gather outside the Senator’s doors for the latest fan-fest of the movie series based on the seven books by J.K. Rowling.

Expect costumes – as some will post as Harry, Hermione, Hagrid, Ron and even dearly departed Dumbledore. Daring devotees of “He whose name cannot be spoken” are also likely to show in dark duds.

The pending Hogwarts-a-thon has left Cusack a little astonished.

“I have even heard of groups of people who want to take their kids out of school on Friday to see the show,” she said.

Cusack and her father, Buzz, were recently named by the Baltimore Development Corp. as operators of the Senator after prior owner, Thomas Kiefaber, closed the 71-year-old theater amid financial difficulties. The city had purchased the Art Deco-style theatre in north Baltimore at a foreclosure auction and eventually turned over operations to the Cusacks, who own the Charles Theatre downtown.

The theater, which has about 840 seats, reopened on Oct. 15. Renovations and addition of a couple of eateries are underway.  Tickets are $7.50 for a matinee and $9 for the regular show. Groups of 25 and more can purchase at a special rate.

The film is expected to remain on the large screen there “for a while,” Cusack said.