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03/01/2017 11:01 PMOn Tuesday, April 4, almost 90 art house movie theaters across the country in 79 cities and in 34 states, plus one location in Canada, will be participating collectively in a national screening of the ’80s movie 1984 starring the late John Hurt. This date was chosen because it’s the day George Orwell’s protagonist Winston Smith begins rebelling against his oppressive government by keeping a forbidden diary. These theaters owners also strongly believe in supporting the National Endowment for the Arts and see any attempt to scuttle that program as an attack on free speech and creative expression through entertainment. This event provides a chance for communities around the country to show their unity and have their voices heard.
The film will be shown in Connecticut at Madison Art Cinemas 761 Boston Post Road in Madison, the Yale Film Colloquium at the Whitney Humanities Center Auditorium on Wall Street in New Haven, and the Avon Theater Film Center on Bedford Street in Stamford.
Orwell’s novel begins with the sentence, “It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen.” Orwell’s portrait is of a government that manufactures their own facts, demands total obedience, and demonizes foreign enemies. The endeavor encourages theaters to take a stand for our most basic values: freedom of speech, respect for our fellow human beings, and the simple truth that there are no such things as “alternative facts.” By doing what they do best—showing a movie—the goal is that cinemas can initiate a much-needed community conversation. Through nationwide participation and strength in numbers, these screenings are intended to galvanize people at the crossroads of cinema and community.
Participating theaters that charge admission will be donating a portion of the proceeds to local charities and organizations, or using the proceeds for the purposes of underwriting future educational and community-related programming