Culture
Holiday Movie Series Returns to Athena Cinema
< < Back toFor the fourth consecutive year, the Athena Cinema will present family friendly holiday classics on Saturday afternoons while supporting area families in need.
From Nov. 28 through Dec. 19, the Athena Cinema (part of Ohio University’s College of Fine Arts) will partner with the Department of Real Estate Management, Community Engagement and Economic Development and Athens food pantries to lessen food insecurity for Athens-community families.
The theater will show afternoon screenings of popular family films every Saturday at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.
The first event on Nov. 28 is a screening of Hugo. Other scheduled screenings include Elf on Dec. 5, The Polar Express on Dec. 12 and How the Grinch Stole Christmas on Dec. 19. This year’s program includes a special evening screening of National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. on Dec. 12.
There will be a limited number of tickets available for these one-time only screening events.
“We love celebrating the holidays with this annual tradition,” said Athena Cinema Director Alexandra Kamody. “It gives our community a chance to give back meanwhile enjoying time together.”
To benefit area families in need, the price of admission to these screenings will be a minimum donation of one canned food per ticket. The food items will be donated to Athens city food pantries and other hunger relief programs.
Tickets will be available one week before each scheduled screening. Donations may be dropped off during regular Athena lobby hours. At the time of the donation, ticket redemption will be given. The Athena Cinema lobby is open on Monday-Friday from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. and on Saturdays and Sundays from 2:30 p.m. to 10 p.m.
The purpose of this initiative is to give back to the greater Athens community and families in need during the season. Theater staff also hope to provide an affordable uptown entertainment option and increase traffic to area businesses.
For more information, visit athenacinema.com.
