AMHERST - David Ratner was sitting near the front of the Amherst Cinema, listening to the cheers as Malia and Sasha Obama appeared on the screen, and thinking how it's important to be with other citizens on a historic occasion.

"Because it's a national phenomenon, I don't see this as an occasion for individual thoughts as much as for collective thoughts," he said.

More than 100 people came to the Amherst Cinema Tuesday to watch the PBS inaugural coverage. They were there not so much for the big screen, popcorn and comfortable seats as the feeling of being in a community of like-minded people.

"It's a sense of having everybody together," said Jay Elliott. "It's always better to celebrate with other people than celebrate alone. I want a tambourine so I can sing 'Let the Sun Shine In.'"

Mary Sayer said she liked the energy level. "It's more upbeat and makes you feel you're a part of history more than if you're at home," she said.

The Amherst Cinema exists to enrich the community, said Carol Johnson, the executive director. "This is a heartwarming, exuberant experience," she said. "It's one of the reasons we're here."

The crowd gave big ovations to Michelle Obama and Jill Biden when they first appeared on the screen, and hissed George Bush. Dick Cheney drew even stronger hisses and boos. Elliott said the image of Cheney in a wheelchair was "like a bad novel." Half the crowd waited to leave the theater until they saw Bush get into his helicopter to leave Washington.

The biggest laugh came when a PBS commentator, commenting on Laura Bush, noted that first ladies tend to look more glamorous as a president's term progresses, but their husbands tend to look more haggard.

The crowd stood and clapped and cheered for about a minute just after Obama took the oath of office.

Lois Bass was so moved by the ceremony that she periodically gasped out loud, "What a moment!" and "Wow!" and "Incredible!" "I was filled with wonder and excitement and hope," she said later.

Not everyone agreed about everything. Meg Gage said she was disappointed that Obama chose Rick Warren to give the invocation, because of his statements on gay marriage, while Onawumi Jean Moss called the choice "genius" because it brought people of different viewpoints together.

Bella Halsted was already looking toward the next demonstration in Washington, but she was feeling exhilarated that this time the protesters would be heard.

"We've been in a long period of despair and cynicism and hopelessness," she said. "Now I have a desire to work for justice in the world. There are a lot of issues we want Obama to stick his neck out for, but he'll be politic. I hope he'll become a real leader like Lincoln on issues that matter."

While watching the inauguration, Lewis Rudolph remembered working for civil rights in Mississippi during the 1960s.

"I'm feeling a rare kind of exuberance of getting to the next step in human evolution," he said. "It's beyond anything I've ever experienced. This is as good as it gets."

Nick Grabbe can be reached at ngrabbe@gazettenet.com.