OGT Spotlight
OGT Closure due to COVID-19
Dear members and patrons, Since the Friends of Greenbelt Theatre reopened the Old Greenbelt Theatre on May 1, 2015, we have prided ourselves on never going a day without showing a movie. We’ve been there through snow days, every Federal holiday, a major renovation, and all the quiet normal days in between. It’s not some […]
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TOP HAT: “Every Once in a While I Suddenly Find Myself Dancing”
By Stacia Woycheck When I write my blog posts for the Monday Matinees, I typically rent the movie on Amazon Prime (mostly), watch it once, then write. Depending on the flick, sometimes I watch it twice. The March Matinee, Top Hat, is a “two-view” film for me. Although we haven’t had much cause for the […]
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ASK CAITLIN: How do you pick the movies?
By Caitlin McGrath, Executive Director of Friends of Greenbelt Theatre Choosing the films we play is one of the most fun *and* most challenging parts of being Executive Director. Fun because I get to think about what our community might like to see, and challenging because beyond that much of it is out of my […]
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Hollywood & the Academy Achieve Record Diversity – Yet #OscarsSoWhite Remains Relevant As Ever
By OGT Blog Squad Volunteer Arrabi Nandakumar When April Reign, former attorney and current writer/DC-based activist first tweeted “#OscarsSoWhite” in 2016, it sparked a social movement as the hashtag spread through Twitter and news outlets, and led to mass boycotts of the 2016 Oscars. This spurred the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), […]
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1917: Review by a WWI Historian
By OGT Blog Squad Volunteer Nicole Hudgins With inspiration from his grandfather, director Sam Mendes has created an innovative “one shot” World War I adventure in the buzz-worthy film 1917. Faced with cut telephone lines as the consequence of a German retreat, a British general (Colin Firth) recruits two soldiers to deliver a vital message […]
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The Old Greenbelt Theatre goes Beyond the Screen!
Dear Friends, At this time last year, we were facing a lot of uncertainty. With independent cinemas closing permanently all across the country and with our theater facing a four month renovation of our only screening space, we really weren’t sure how we’d keep our organization going. We explored all kinds of avenues to continue […]
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Little Women: A Review
By Ephram Oliver, 15-year-old grandchild of Greenbelter and Member Stephanie Zirkin. The first thing I did after the credits rolled during Little Women was mouth “wow.” I love movies directed by women about women, and Greta Gerwig seems to be the master of exploring the complexities of the female spirit, portraying their strength as well […]
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Twentieth Century: “They are the only true actors we have left.”
By Stacia Woycheck, OGT Blog Squad Volunteer Start the year off right at the first Monday Matinee of 2019, Twentieth Century, on Monday, January 6th. The 1934 film stars John Barrymore as Oscar Jaffe—an overbearing, down on his luck director—and Carole Lombard, as Mildred Plotka turned Lily Garland—Jaffe’s protege who strikes it rich as an […]
Read MoreA Holiday Card from O. G. Theatre
Dear Friend, We’ve come to the season where we sit down and take stock of the year. And wowie, what a year I’ve had! Not to brag or anything, but I’m looking fabulous. Alright, alright…I’ll admit, I did get a bit of a facelift. I got a new roof, new HVAC, new draperies, new screen, […]
Read MoreGATe Curtain Call: Parasite Review
Greenbelt Access Television’s Phoebe McFarb reviews Parasite, which runs in our Auditorium until Friday, November 15, when it moves to the Pop-up. Parasite is a 2019 film directed by Bong Joon Ho, who is best known for his films Snowpiercer, The Host, and Okja. Each has a different culturally significant message that plays an important role […]
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OGT’s Caitlin McGrath honored on Beltway Plaza Wall of Fame
Old Greenbelt Theatre’s Dr. Caitlin McGrath was honored by the Beltway Plaza mall on Friday, October 18 as she was inducted into their Wall of Fame, which recognizes Greenbelt locals who are making a difference in the community. Greenbelt Access Television recapped the event in this 4 minute video.
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The Apartment: Shut Up and Deal!
November’s Monday Matinee is the award winning film, The Apartment. The 1961 Oscar winner for Best Picture is chock full of young stars that you will certainly recognize. Jack Lemmon, Shirley MacLaine, and Fred MacMurray create a powerhouse triad. Edie Adams (Miss Olsen) is thrown in for good measure. The film won an Academy Award […]
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“The Old Ladies Get 12” in October’s Monday Matinee
By Stacia Woycheck, OGT Blog Squad Volunteer After a month off for Labor Day, Monday Matinees are back! This Monday, October 7th feature is the classic Arsenic and Old Lace starring the ever debonair Cary Grant and Priscilla Lane, directed by Frank Capra. Oddly, Arsenic and Old Lace struck me as a film I thought […]
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My Weird, Wonderful Experience at the Toronto International Film Festival
30 movies in 8 days. This was the goal before I left – knowing that I could average four a day, with two more on the final morning before I dashed to the airport. To pull this off requires a lot of planning, hustling in and out of venues, and a long list of alternates, […]
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NEW PRODUCT: OGT now carries J. Elise Tea
The Old Greenbelt Theatre is proud to feature concessions items from local businesses, and we are excited to announce that J. Elise Tea is joining the lineup, along with Zeke’s Coffee, Baba’s Brew, Dundalk Dan’s Beef Jerky, and other local favorites. J. Elise Tea beverage company was founded in 2016 under the health and wellness […]
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Jezebel Unites Two Classic Hollywood Greats
Catch the last Monday Matinee of the summer as the OGT features the film Jezebel starring Henry Fonda and Bette Davis. The black and white romantic drama was released in 1938 by Warner Brothers and won five Oscars: Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress, Best Picture, Best Cinematography, and Best Score. The film has some similarities […]
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OGT VIP Volunteer: Christine Wells!
Every six months, OGT picks a VIP volunteer. This is someone who in the prior six months has proved an indispensable part of our volunteer team or who has stepped up in a big way for us. This month, we chose Christine Wells as our VIP volunteer. During the lead-up to our big renovation and […]
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Monday Matinee Preview: The Lady Eve (1941)
By Stacia Woycheck, OGT Blog Squad Volunteer The July Monday Matinee is The Lady Eve released in 1941, starring Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda. The comedy won the Academy Award for Best Writing, Original Story. It was named as a top ten films in 1941 and is considered one of the 500 greatest movies of […]
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The Pop-up at OGT: What’s with the delays?
We are grateful to all of our patrons who are waiting eagerly for the opening of our Pop-up cinema. Because we’re regularly getting questions, we wanted to write up some of the most frequently asked questions so you have answers on what’s up with the Pop-up and where you can continue to see films with […]
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The Strange Journey of Rocky Horror: From box office flop to cult classic.
By OGT Blog Squad Member Stacia Woycheck “I would like, if I may, to take you on a strange journey.” – The Criminologist On June 1 at 8pm, for one night only, the Old Greenbelt Theatre is going to take you on a strange journey with the screening of the cult classic The Rocky Horror […]
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Four Years On: Four Things I’ve Learned
By OGT Executive Director Caitlin McGrath Even four years later, the memory is crystal clear: A cold night in January, 2015. Sitting in Greenbelt City Council Chambers, the room was packed as we quietly waited for the vote. For nearly two years I had been working a plan to transform the theater into a vibrant […]
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The Alfred Hitchcock Remix, by…Alfred Hitchcock?
By Stacia Woycheck, OGT Blog Squad Member On Monday, May 6, the Monthly Monday Matinee features Alfred Hitchcock’s mystery drama, The Man Who Knew Too Much. The film was released in 1956 and stars James Stewart and Doris Day. I settled in to watch The Man Who Knew Too Much on a recent Friday night. […]
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When one screen isn’t enough…
By Kelly McLaughlin, OGT Director of Marketing & Development “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” The famous Dickensian opening lines are tantamount to cliché, but at the same time vastly appropriate to the life of independent, arthouse movie theaters these days, as two dueling articles recently published in Variety […]
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Tammy Hurley: Why I’m a Part of OGT
By Tammy Hurley, OGT Volunteer Concessions Team Leader I knew about the theater before I moved to Greenbelt in 2016. I had no idea of its background or it being non-profit. I did know it showed the kind of movies I was interested in seeing, which was really good enough for me. When I moved […]
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