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Yavapai College Performing Arts Center Moves “Social Distance Dinner Theater”


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Social Distance Dinner Theater – Prescott’s Yavapai College Performing Arts Center’s shared-but-separate celebration of film – will be taking its live stream programming to Wednesday nights beginning June 3.

YCPAC’s innovative combination of local Zoom discussion and Livestream cinema will conclude its Saturday night run at 5 p.m. on May 30, with a curtain talk and post-show discussion around the live stream screening of The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind. It will return the following Wednesday, at 6 p.m. with a Director’s Choice screening of the film Big Night.

“Social Distance Dinner Theater opened strong in April and has developed a following,” YCPAC Managing Director and Film & Media Arts Director Helen Stephenson says. “But with more weekend entertainment options opening up, we now feel it would work most effectively as an entertainment break in the middle of the week.”

Social Distance Dinner Theater’s final Saturday offering, on May 30, is the inspirational film The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind. Based upon the true story of a 13-year-old Malawi boy whose technical wizardry saved his village from famine, the film is available for streaming on Netflix, and can be previewed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPkr9HmglG0. The Raven Café, in Prescott, will be selling companion meals for curbside pickup on Saturday. A full menu is available at: www.Ravencafe.com. Patrons can order on the website or by calling: (928) 717-0009.

Big Night, SDDT’s Wednesday June 3rd film, vividly and deliciously tells the story of two Italian brothers (Stanley Tucci and Tony Shalhoub,) struggling to keep their Jersey shore restaurant open in the 1950s. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IkaaUuQwRZY. Available on Amazon Prime, Big Night features Isabella Rossellini, Allison Janney, and Minnie Driver and has been called “a lyrical love poem to food and family.” There will be no official partner restaurant for Big Night, although members are encouraged to patronize their Italian restaurant of choice.

Social Distance Dinner Theater premiered in April, as a way for local film fans to share a movie without leaving their homes. Here’s how it works:

Each week, YCPAC will offer a choice of four films available on Netflix or Amazon Prime. Viewers can vote for their favorite on the YCPAC website (www.ycpac.com) or YCPAC’s Facebook page. The deadline for voting is 9 a.m. each Tuesday.

The winning film will be announced Tuesdays, on YCPAC’s website and Facebook page.

On Wednesday evenings, viewers can settle in for a 6 p.m. Curtain Talk show on Zoom. Yavapai College Film & Media Arts Director Helen Stephenson will offer background and behind-the-scenes stories on the night’s movie. The show will conclude with a countdown to the live stream.

After simultaneously enjoying the film from the comfort of their homes, viewers can participate in a live-streamed post-show discussion, hosted by Stephenson, also on Zoom.

Each week, “Social Distance Dinner Theater” will offer a selection of movies from a variety of film genres. Viewers must have a Netflix or Amazon Prime account to screen the movie. But participation – including voting, pre-show Curtain Talk, and the post-show film discussion – is entirely free. Pre- and post-show Zoom links are available on the YCPAC Website or Facebook page.

“Social Distance Dinner Theater” is brought to you through the Yavapai College Performing Arts Center, and its Season Presenting Partner, Findlay Toyota Prescott.

For further information on “Social Distance Dinner Theater,” please call the YCPAC Ticket Office at (928) 776.2000, or visit: www.ycpac.com.

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