80th Anniversay for Historic Toccoa Theatre Postponed

By Ethan Jordan, WNEG Radio, Toccoa

In Toccoa, the Historic Ritz Theatre’s planned 80th anniversary celebration has been rescheduled.

According to Friends of the Ritz President Keith Kozicki, the screening of The Wizard of Oz, along with the 80 for 80 Celebration will be moved to Friday, November 22.

Originally planned for October 18th Kozicki says they received notice from Warner Brothers Entertainment, which owns the rights to The Wizzard of Oz, that a national moratorium had been imposed on any public screenings of the movie from October 1st through November 15th.

He says that previously purchased tickets can still be used on the new date.

Events kick off at 5:30 p.m. on November 22, with an onstage children’s performance of your favorite Wizard of Oz songs, followed by a celebration of the Historic Ritz Theatre, complete with birthday cake.

Then, UGA Film Studies professor Richard Neupert will explain why The Wizard of Oz is considered one of the most important films in the history of cinema, followed by the screening of the movie at 7 p.m.

There will also be tours of the Ritz now that all of the renovations have been completed.

As previously planned, the special reception will still be held in the Green Room of the Ritz for all 80 for 80 Celebration donors prior to the showing of the film.

The 80 for 80 Celebration is the first official fundraiser for the Friends of the Ritz, which recently received its tax-exempt status from the IRS. Their goal is to have a minimum of 80 donors who contribute $80 each towards the event.

Tickets for the fundraising event can be purchased through the Historic Ritz Theatre website at www.ritztheatretoccoa.com and are available at the Toccoa Welcome Center.