BCT stages awards screening

The stage at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater is usually known for presenting local theater productions and speakers as part of IU lecture series.
 
But Sunday night, the theater screened the 86th Academy Awards in grand fashion, installing a movie theater-sized screen on the stage and inviting Bloomington residents to show up in their finest attire and take in the show like the A-list celebrities.

This is the first year the Buskirk-Chumley has screened the Academy Awards in its theater. Associate Director Rebecca Stanze said the event was created to support the theater’s mission to promote film.

Stanze said the theater started off as a movie theater, but the community has come to recognize it as a venue for plays, musicals and other live performing arts.

“We wanted to remind them this is a place for film as well,” she said.

The event kicked off at 7 p.m. with the red carpet pre-show.

While guests were able to take in the glamorous fashions of Sandra Bullock, Jennifer Lawrence, Lupita Nyong’o and other stylish celebrities, the theater offered activities to give guests a full cinematic event.

During commercial breaks, theater workers took to the stage for movie trivia, where guests ran up to microphones set up at the end of the aisles to respond to prompts such as the first movie to win best animated film.

Other games like Oscar Bingo took place throughout the night.

Guests were given bingo ballots with different moments to look out for during the live telecast and the event at the Buskirk-Chumley.

Guests were also invited to fill out prediction sheets before the event. The guest who predicted the most awards correctly was offered a prize.

Stanze said locals expressed a lot of interest in the event, though the turbulent weather might have turned people away.

That proved true for friends of Dena El Saffar and 13-year-old Layla Moore.
Both from Bloomington, they came to the event after hearing about it from friends, who were unable to attend due to the inclement weather.

El Saffar said it’s hard to watch award shows like this in Bloomington without having cable, which was part of the reason she and Moore came out Sunday night.

“I feel like I always miss out on these things,” she said. “And for once, I’ve seen a lot of the movies.”

IU seniors Apeksha Shivnani and Kanwal Jaggi also attended Sunday night because of all the nominated films they’d seen.

“It’s interesting Bloomington hosts something like this for free,” Shivnani said.

Stanze said the event offered guests who are passionate about film an opportunity to experience the prominent award show on a larger scale.

“I think when you’re watching at home in your sweatpants, you can’t get as excited about people getting dressed up and winning these awards,” she said. “It’s really an event for the people to get dressed up and celebrate in a fancy way.”