Lights! Camera! Action! Fall is for films at WAC and AMP

Saturdays are for cinema at the Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville and at the Walmart Arkansas Music Pavilion in Rogers with the new Saturday Cinema series. During this time of extended intermission, the two performance venues have found a way to bring entertainment to the masses in a safe and socially distanced way.

"We're excited to be able to offer film during this time and it's so much fun to be able to curate these, they're not off-the-wall films, but they're films that people may not have heard of," shares Jennifer Ross, director of programming at the WAC.

The first Saturday Cinema was hosted Sept. 12 at WAC with a showing of "Blinded by the Light" -- the story of a young British teen who finds his voice and the courage to be himself, set to the music of The Boss -- followed by a recording of the live London stage production of "Kinky Boots." This Saturday, the series moves north to the AMP where, on National Talk Like a Pirate Day, swashbucklers and scalawags can see "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" on the big screen once again.

"It's a giant, sweeping, epic kind of film, and it appeals to a wide family audience," offers Scott Galbraith, vice president of programming and executive producer.

"We really hope that people will dress up!" Ross adds.

"We're going to be outside at the AMP and take advantage of the beautiful Northwest Arkansas late summer/early fall, and then we'll come back inside when it starts to get chilly again," Galbraith continues of the series.

After this weekend, films will continue at the AMP for the next two Saturdays -- Sept. 26 and Oct. 3 -- before moving back inside at WAC. More movies will be announced soon for both locations, but guests can expect a mixed bag of classic films, documentaries and recorded performances.

Some 20 saw people "Blinded by the Light" and around 70 were at the "Kinky Boots" screening. Imagine having Baum Walker Hall nearly all to yourself to see a movie on the big screen! But even if attendance increases as the series continues, both locations will also be following the health and safety guidelines laid out by the Arkansas Department of Health in maintaining social distancing. Everyone will have plenty of space to spread out at both WAC and the AMP, Ross assures.

-- Jocelyn Murphy

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