Chuck E. Cheese is ditching all but 5 animatronic bands. Charlotte gets to keep one.

For many decades, Chuck E. Cheese’s in-house band has entertained birthday kids and families enjoying pizza, cake and sodas for celebrations — but the furry musicians with big eyes are not the life of the party anymore.

The animatronics Munch’s Make Believe Band is leaving most stages at restaurants across the country. But their fans can still see them play in Charlotte at the restaurant and kids play site at 7701 Pineville-Matthews Road — one of just five being saved in the U.S.

Since the 1970s, the company’s mission has been about entertaining “today’s kids,” said Mark Kupferman, executive vice president and chief marketing officer for CEC Entertainment in an interview with The Charlotte Observer.

Things have changed a lot over the years, especially with technology and keeping children amused, he said. “The number one reason they go is because of the games,” Kupferman said.

Chuck E. Cheese locations are renovated every 10 years to prepare for the next generation of children, Kupferman said. Some of the nationwide enhancements will include a new interactive dance floor, a giant video wall and screens, popular arcade games and trampoline zones.

The company is currently making change at centers across the U.S.

“Trampolines are one of the things that our kids told us that they love and want to experience,” he said about bringing them to Charlotte in a few weeks.

Let’s hear it for the band

But many nostalgic fans are not ready to see the band retire.

“So many people like myself grew up with the animatronics, “ Kupferman said, “and it’s a part of Americana and people’s childhoods.”

After complaints from people who wanted the bands to stay, CEC decided to keep some bands around.

There even was a petition through Change.org to keep the band at the Pineville-Matthews Road in south Charlotte. It had more than 450 signatures.

“Chuck E. Cheese does not have a great track record of preserving its history, but this would be a very well-valued step in the right direction,” the petition said. “Without these historical animatronics that have entertained millions, Chuck E Cheese really is just another pizza place.”

Along with other locations across the nation, the restaurant was originally known as ShowBiz Pizza and the band was called The Rock-afire Explosion, before the merger with Chuck E. Cheese.

A ‘tip-top’ band

The 42-year-old Chuck E. Cheese in Charlotte was selected for the surrounding neighborhood and for having one of the best maintained set of animatronics in the U.S., Kupferman said. One of the maintenance challenges is the limited number of people who can keep them operating.

A test is conducted every morning for the restaurant’s animatronics. Each band member has about 50 motions that they can make during performances.

“The team has worked diligently to make sure it’s in tip-top, perfect condition,” Kupferman said. “That’s challenging when you consider that things were built 40-something years ago.”

Chuck E. Cheese is remodeling the location this summer. One of the additions will be a memorabilia wall, according to the company.

No fear?

Animatronics have been used in scary movies like “Five Nights at Freddy’s.” But Kupferman believes most kids are not afraid of the band.

If they were frightening children, Kupferman said they would have been removed a long time ago.

“There’s rumors out there about why we’re getting rid of the animatronics,” he said. “But the reality is that we made the decision about five or six years ago and we talked to so many kids and it wasn’t something that they wanted.”

More on Chuck E. Cheese

Chuck E. Cheese was founded in 1977 in San Jose, Calif. by Atari’s co-founder Nolan Bushnell. The company operates 600 locations in 47 states and 19 foreign countries and territories.

The chain is phasing the band out at hundreds of locations by the end of the year. Along with the south Charlotte site, animatronics performers will remain at locations in Nanuet, N.Y.; Hicksville, N.Y.; Springfield, Ill.; and Los Angeles.

Even with a band, Kupferman emphasized Chuck E. Cheese is the star of the show nowadays for kids — on or off stage.

“We have walk-around characters that kids can hug and experience, which is more fun than hugging a robot,” he said. “They’re not allowed to touch the animatronics, but they can hug Chuck E. Cheese.”