Photographers Yves Marchand and Romain Meffre have photographed abandoned theaters throughout the US for more than a decade.

Their images show the decline of movie-going in American cities, though a few of the contemporary ruins are undergoing a transformation.

Marchand and Meffre's collection of images will be showcased in April in New York City.

Decades before the decline of retail stores, movie theaters around the United States started to shutter. As cities lost residents to the suburbs around the 1950s, some of their most popular theaters, auditoriums, and opera houses began to empty out.

Around that time, television became a staple part of the American home, reducing the need to pay for entertainment. Newer movie theaters also built multiple auditoriums, each with fewer seats, to allow for more than one showing at a time. In a matter of decades, large, grand movie palaces became virtually obsolete.

With no customers to keep them afloat, buildings designed to seat thousands, like the Metropolitan Opera House in Philadelphia and the Paramount Theater in Brooklyn, were abandoned.

Read more: A Times Square theater that's been abandoned for nearly 30 years is getting a $100 million makeover. Here's what it will look like.

Recognizing this pattern of decay, photographers Yves Marchand and Romain Meffre set out to capture deserted theaters across America. Their ongoing project kicked off in 2005 after they discovered an abandoned movie theater in Detroit.

Even though residents have returned to cities, refurbishing old theaters can be too costly for developers and city governments. Meffre said they've come across some theaters that were in decent condition, while others had a "post-war, apocalyptic" atmosphere.

Since many theaters lack windows, Marchand and Meffre sometimes take photographs in total darkness, relying on a handmade flashlight to illuminate certain details.

In April, their images will be showcased at The Photography Show, which is hosted by the Association of International Photography Art Dealers in New York City.

Here's a preview of some of the most striking contemporary ruins shown in their collection.