$3 Bill Cinema Brings Back Capitol Hill Outdoor Cinema…In May/POSTPONED!

UPDATE! THREE DOLLAR BILL ANNOUNCED AT THE LAST MINUTE THEY WERE POSTPONING THIS SCREENING OF “RENT”. NO REASON WAS GIVEN:

It was a very popular event every summer….Three Dollar Bill’s annual Outdoor Movie Series in Cal Anderson Park which usually happened in July and August, because less chance of being rained out, and always occurred in the grassy common area between the playing field and the reservoir next to the bathrooms/community room. For years, they would have 4 screenings, and always some fun campy film that all could enjoy.

Sadly, things change. Budget issues cut back the number of screenings, then the topsy turvy management of Three Dollar Bill complicated things. Covid happened followed by the Black Lives Matter Protests and for reasons that don’t make a whole lot of sense, a sad little community garden was planted in the middle of the community gathering area and it’s still there…even though that sweet but tiny little garden can maybe only feed about 7 people….if one enjoys chard that’s been peed on. While the community gathering space it replaced was host to thousands of people every year for a range of events from Pride, to community memorials, and rallies, and community yard sales, and film screenings.

(Sigh. Intentions are nice but not always practical in the long run. The garden can easily be relocated to a better location in Cal Anderson. Which would free up this space to be used for what it was intended for…a community gathering space. But, I digress.)

The new kids at Three Dollar Bill have partnered up with Gay City and AMP, the AIDS Memorial Pathway folks to bring back the screening event…it’s happening this Saturday, May 21st at the AMP Plaza which is the long public plaza/walkway between the two main buildings at the Capitol Hill Light Rail Station complex. The AMP Plaza is home to several pieces of art honoring the lives of people with HIV/AIDS in Seattle. The screening will be at the south end of the plaza by Barbara Bailey Way (aka Denny Way) and will start with pre-show fun at 6:30pm with screening to start at 7:45pm.

The film screened will be 2005’s “Rent” the film adaptation of the hit Broadway musical about young arty folk in NYC coping with AIDS and gentrification.

Note you will need to bring your own seating for this event!!! It’s all concrete here unlike the grassy area over in Cal Anderson Park where they used to have the screenings, so you’ll probably need more than just a blanket on the ground to be comfortable! Fold up chairs will be a must!

Fortunately, the weather forecast is for partly cloudy/sunny with a high of 67 during the day. Fingers crossed!