[photo credit: City of Pasadena]
The showing is part of Movies in the Park, one strand of the city’s Parks After Dark program, which runs as a series of free evening activities in neighborhood parks from early July into August. The film begins at 7:00 p.m., the event is listed to run until 9:30 p.m., admission is free, and the city asks moviegoers to bring their own blankets and lawn chairs. Washington Park sits at 700 East Washington Boulevard.
Parks After Dark is run by the City of Pasadena Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department, which, in a June 24 press release, described the program as a summer series of free family activities, sports, movies and swimming across neighborhood parks. The department said the season runs July 9 through Aug. 14.
The July 17 film is the second of five Friday movies scheduled across the city. The dated lineup runs Fridays from July 10 through Aug. 7: “Gabby’s Dollhouse” at Villa Parke, “SpongeBob” at Washington Park, “GOAT” at Robinson Park, “Zootopia 2” at Grant Park, and “Hocus Pocus” at Victory Park.
The movie nights are only one piece of the season. According to the press release, the program spans neighborhood parks across the city and includes a kickoff festival, held Thursday, July 9, at Robinson Park, along with adult and youth basketball leagues and adult soccer leagues through the summer. Other listed events include a Foam & Glow Frenzy on July 16, a World Cup soccer tournament with Dena United on July 24, and evening recreation swims on Saturdays.
According to the press release, this year’s program adds hands-on STEM activities led by scientists and engineers from Caltech at select events — the first time the 15-year-old program has done so. The city said most activities are free, with registration required only for select programs and leagues, and that the schedule is subject to change.
In materials describing the department’s work, the city has characterized Parks After Dark as a program run in partnership with the Pasadena Police Department and as part of a broader violence-prevention strategy that keeps park spaces active on summer evenings.
For the movie nights, the department lists a program information line at 626-744-6530 and a general City Service Center line at 626-744-7311. For accessibility accommodations, the city directs attendees to email CSC@CityOfPasadena.net or call 626-744-7311.
Fifteen summers on, the screens go up in the parks after dark again — this Friday, with a cartoon sponge for company.
