Film and Wine Paired in Virtual Series
Marc Strauss, Michael Rose, and Wellfleet Preservation Hall are presenting the virtual series “Film & Wine” on Zoom every other Tuesday through July 14. The cost is $20 for four screenings, although the series, which was announced after press time last issue, began last Tuesday. To sign up, go to wellfleetpreservationhall.org.
Viewers will meet on Zoom at 6 p.m., taste wines (purchased separately), discuss the film and its wine theme, watch the movie at 6:30, then join an optional discussion afterward.
On June 16, the selection is Alexander Payne’s romantic drama Sideways, with Paul Giamatti, Virginia Madsen, Thomas Haden Church, and Sandra Oh, to be enjoyed with a California pinot noir and merlot.
On June 30, the selection is the family-vineyard documentary A Year in Burgundy, to be enjoyed with a white and red Burgundy.
Finally, on July 14, the selection is the wine-counterfeiting documentary Sour Grapes, to be enjoyed with a Premier Cru Burgundy and an old Bordeaux.
Provincetown Theater Postpones Entire Season
The board of directors of the Provincetown Theater announced on Monday that it would reschedule all of the theater’s 2020 productions in 2021. The decision was due to the anticipated phase four restrictions for theaters.
“Our top priority in moving through this health crisis has always been to respect the safety of our patrons, our staff, and the dozens of actors and artists involved,” the theater’s artistic director, David Drake, said in the press release. “And mark my words, we are determined to return all of our community back to seeing these productions in the Provincetown Theater as soon as it is safe to do so. Meanwhile, we’re excited to continue developing new virtual programs, which will be seen throughout the year on our website via our YouTube channel.”
The roster of rescheduled productions includes Mae West’s The Drag, the world premiere of Sarah Schulman’s The Lady Hamlet, Robert Chesley’s Jerker, Bekah Brunstetter’s The Cake, and Eugene O’Neill’s A Moon for the Misbegotten. Each of these productions will assume similar spring-through-winter slots in 2021.
Jordan Renzi Plays the Payomet Tiny Tent
Wellfleet singer-songwriter Jordan Renzi will appear on a free, live Tiny Tent event via Payomet Performing Arts Center on Wednesday, June 10, at 6 p.m.
Go to Payomet’s Facebook page, click on “Events,” and watch the concert online in real time.
Renzi released a new album, Just a Dream, last September. It was recorded at Big Red Studios in Wellfleet. Sample it, and a new single, “Bird,” at jordanrenzi.bandcamp.com.
Film Society Lays Off CEO
The Covid-19 pandemic has taken its toll on the Provincetown Film Society, with the Waters Edge Cinema closed until at least June 29 — after which phase three restrictions could make operation unfeasible — and the Provincetown International Film Festival postponed until 2021. The financial repercussions have now led the society’s board to lay off its new CEO, Rachael Brister, who had barely started her job earlier this year when the coronavirus hit. Brister replaced departing CEO Christine K. Walker. Brister is already back in Seattle, where she was a marketing consultant before taking the film society position.
“Although Rachael’s tenure with us has been cut short, we are thankful for her many contributions, especially her efforts in helping us establish our virtual cinema as a unifying community space,” Anthony Lawson, president and board chair, said in a press release last Thursday.
The rest of the staff at Waters Edge had already been laid off in March. Now, with Brister gone, two employees are working part-time to maintain the virtual program and website.
Although the virtual screenings are online, Waters Edge gets a share of the $12 rental fee. Two new films will be added to the schedule on Friday, June 5: the thriller Shirley, starring Elisabeth Moss and Logan Lerman, and the environmental documentary 2040. To watch, go to watersedgecinema.org.
