“Movies In The Plaza” Scares Up Fun

Last night a snuggled up yet safely distanced crowd gathered downtown to watch a movie about three witches who rise from the dead on Halloween and wreak a bit of havoc in their own town of Salem. Pitkin Plaza on Orange Street was the setting for ​“Movies in the Plaza,” a weekly free event held every Wednesday since July and now being celebrated with spookier films in honor of the season.

According to Francesca Vignola, marketing and events manager for the Town Green District, the event was extended through October due to popular demand.

“It’s been very successful,” Vignola said. ​“People are having a fun time in a safe way.”

Multiple chairs and tables are usually set up in the plaza, but for this event a turf lawn is also added in the front area closer to the screen for those who want to bring blankets and sit on the ground. People are also invited to bring their own chairs and set up in their own spot. The idea was to have a ​“nice safe event” that still brought people together in the city. Vignola said that has been accomplished.

“it’s definitely more of a local crowd,” she noted, with a lot of people coming in from nearby apartments and neighborhoods. The safety part has been easy to manage. ​“Honestly, it’s been awesome,” she said. The Town Green District is already planning on having the movies return in the spring of 2021.

On this Wednesday night Vignola, along with SCSU intern Annie Byrne and Deputy Director Matthew Griswold attended the check-in table, where guests were asked to sign in (with pens they could then keep) and offered complimentary masks and hand sanitizer. Elm City Market provided snacks including apples and individual bags of popcorn and chips.

“They have been so nice and generous,” said Vignola.

Many came early to enjoy food they brought in on their own, something typically discouraged at indoor movie theaters. Pizza boxes and bags of takeout were seen frequently between couples and small groups as other lined up to find their spaces. The patrons on the patio at Trinity Bar, which borders the plaza, also had a good spot from which to view the screen, which was set up on the side of the plaza that bordered by the parking garage. Two children made shadow puppets and danced in front of the lights as more info about Town District offerings and future screenings played prior to the film.

The film on this evening was the Hocus Pocus, a cult favorite and now Halloween classic released in 1993. This reporter had never seen it. From the cheers heard once it began, it seemed that perhaps I might have been in a small minority.

The premise of the film is fairly simple. Three Salem witches who happen to be sisters return 300 years after being put to death on All Hallows Eve. Though unfamiliar with the modern-day events of Halloween, they make yet another attempt on that night to harness youth and beauty through their magic, while the kids responsible for inadvertently allowing them to return fight to keep them from wreaking havoc.

Famously starring Bette Midler, Kathy Najimy, and Sarah Jessica Parker as the sisters, the film is more silly than scary and entices more laughs than screams. I smiled through all of it, and though a few pieces of it might be considered dated, it seemed kind of perfect to watch under a clear October sky with a solid fall chill in the air. And let’s face it, can a movie be bad that includes a talking cat, a zombie who keeps losing and reattaching his head, a big musical number led by Bette Midler, and cameos from both Garry and Penny Marshall? I was sold.

Apparently, the audience was too, as they erupted in loud cheers and applause at the end. There are two more chances to have a chance to experience this event. Oct. 21 will feature The Addams Family. Oct. 28 will feature Beetlejuice. Dress warm, grab your snacks and head on down. It would be scarier if you missed it.

For more details on ​“Movies In the Plaza” please visit the Town Green District website.