Outdoor cinema relaunches at Barwon Edge

BARWON Edge’s open-air cinema is back for a second year, with a carefully curated program of classic films and family-friendly hits on offer.

This year’s season is scheduled to run over four nights in February – with two films to be aired each evening – at the Newtown restaurant’s sprawling outdoor grassed amphitheatre.

Barwon Edge’s Matt Baird said the outdoor cinema’s inaugural season last summer had been well-received by the community, encouraging the team to bring it back for a second run.

“It was just everything we hoped it was going to be,” he said.

“We got very lucky with some wonderful weather for the sessions last year. Fingers crossed it’s the same thing this year.”

The first session each evening is aimed at younger children, with crowd pleasers like Ratatouille and Cars on the bill, while the second is targeted towards more family-friendly viewing.

“They’re classic movies that we think we’d like to go to, and we hope that everyone else feels the same,” Mr Baird said of this year’s program.

“We really put a lot of time and effort into selecting this year. We’re hoping that we read the public well and they’re all really great.”

Romantic hits When Harry Met Sally and The Wedding Singer will feature on Saturday, February 15 in celebration of Valentine’s Day, and a dog-friendly night on Friday, February 7 will see attendees joined by their four-legged friends for screenings of either Lady and the Tramp or Turner & Hooch.

Mr Baird anticipates the season’s final screening of Dirty Dancing on Friday, February 28 will be this year’s “big hit of the program”.

He personally is looking forward to the February 1 showing of Ocean’s Eleven.

The venue is licensed, meaning alcoholic beverages will be available to purchase, along with an array of classic cinema snacks like popcorn, choc tops and soft drinks.

The cinema does, however, have a strict non-BYO policy.

Comfortable camping-style chairs will be provided, but patrons are welcome to bring a picnic rug if they would prefer to sit on the grass.

“It’s a really great night with the family [and] a really good couple of hours out of the house, down with nature on the river,” Mr Baird said.

“We’d love to see you down there.”

Barwon Edge is at 40 Windsor Road, Newtown.

To view the full program, or to book tickets, head to bit.ly/4alvPw1