The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Those roars by the shore? They’re from dinosaurs
‘Jurassic Park’ is (somehow) old enough to be included in Playhouse Square’s classic film series, Cinema at the Square
Like a dinosaur’s spittleladen roar blowing back your hair, one can’t help but feel old when looking at the lineup for the 22nd annual Cinema at the Square series taking place Aug. 1 through 18 at Playhouse Square’s Connor Palace.
Specifically, this is the case with one of the centerpieces of this year’s 15-movie offering from Playhouse Square — director Steven Spielberg’s 1994 dinosaur blockbuster “Jurassic Park,” which appears Aug. 1.
“We were shocked when we realized ‘Jurassic Park’ was 25 years old,” said David Greene, Playhouse Square senior VP of programming. “Still, it’s kind of fun to program those films that are available on 35mm.
“We haven’t made a shift to digital. We think it’s important to maintain the series for as long as we can on 35mm, which brings it back to the way films were shown
here back in the day.” Each Cinema at the Square film is shown on a massive wide screen, the largest non-IMAX screen in Ohio, using an original 35mm reel-to-reel projection system operated by a skilled projectionist.
Timing is also a factor in another Cinema at the Square film this year — the Aug. 10 screening of “A Star Is Born,” which was remade last year starring Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga.
In some people’s minds the decision would be whether to show the 1954 original or 1976 remake starring Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson.
“There was no debate at all, we went right for the 1954 version,” Greene said. “The Judy Garland film is celebrating its 65th year. Our thinking was we’ve never shown another Judy Garland film (other than) ‘The Wizard of Oz,’ which we’ve shown many times.
“Actually, this year we have two Judy Garland films, with ‘Meet Me in St. Louis.’ So we’re doubling down on Judy Garland.”
If there’s one no-brainer screening on the Cinema at the Square schedule this summer it’s the beloved “The Princess Bride” on Aug. 8.
“We showed ‘The Princess Bride’ in 2013 and had 1,500 people here,” Greene said. “Those are the kinds of experiences that you never get anymore — seeing a film with 1,500 people is incredible.
“It’s actually the secondlargest audience we had for a film on the series in the 22 years, with No. 1 being ‘Mary Poppins.’ That was like 1,700 tickets. So it will be exciting to see a huge crowd come out for ‘The Princess Bride.’”
Speaking of interest in Cinema at the Square, that’s evolved over the last couple of decades.
“When the series first started, it was pretty sluggish, but we eventually found the right the number of films, found the right variety of genres and eras,” Greene said. “For the last 10 years, we’ve kept it to about 15 movies, shown primarily Thursday through Sunday.”
Greene isn’t joking about Playhouse Square taking its time to revamp Cinema at the Square. During its first year, the event included 52 showings and averaged 50 people in attendance for each film with a full season total attendance of 2,650 moviegoers.
Eventually, during the series’ first decade, it averaged 275 people per film. That figure nearly tripled over its second decade, with an average of 750 people attending each film
Over the last 10 years, Cinema at the Square has attracted on average more than 11,000 moviegoers.
“We’ve found the groove, and we’re going to push it as long as we can continue to get 35mm prints, which has definitely has gotten much more difficult,” Greene said. “So, for the foreseeable future, we’re sticking with what we’re doing.”