Let the dads and daughters have their Valentine’s Day dance if they want, because Mom and her boy will contend with the superheroes.
The Portage Parks and Recreation Department will host its second annual Mom and Son Movie Night May 1. For those not up on their major action heroes, that night is opening night for the highly anticipated feature, “Avengers: Age of Ultron,” starring Robert Downey Jr. reprising his role as the acerbic Tony Stark/Iron Man and James Spader as the villain, Ultron.
Moms and sons packed the theater for last year’s premiere, “The Amazing Spider-Man 2,” and Portage Parks and Recreation Marketing Director Lori Wilkie suspects that “Avengers, Age of Ultron” will be no different.
“We have a 270-seat theater, and last year was sold out,” Wilkie said.
The department used to host a Mother-Son dance to celebrate Mother’s Day, but attendance was always pretty dismal, Wilkie said. Something needed to be done.
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“As a mother of boys, I know they would rather do anything but dance with their mom, so we tossed a few ideas around,” she said. “And they would go see a movie.”
Wilkie talked to Portage IMAX 16 Theater Manager Kevin Morgan, who loved the idea. That the opening of “The Amazing Spider-Man 2” coincided with Mother’s Day was just the icing on the cake.
“We were packed in like sardines, but it was a really fun night,” she said.
The department recommends that boys no younger than 3 years old attend the screening because of the noise and excitement, but they do leave it to the moms’ discretion. It has no age limit for older boys, though.
“We had a mom last year come with her 35-year-old son, and they’re coming again this year,” Wilkie said. “And the movie’s debut falls perfectly this year with Mother’s Day.”
Along with seeing the blockbuster film, moms and sons will have their picture taken before going into the movie, Wilkie said. Food will be catered into the theater as well, so attendees can grab their refillable beverage and popcorn prior to the screening as well.
The department plans on continuing the Mother and Son movie day, but the dates for it will always coincide with a blockbuster film screening around Mother’s Day, Wilkie said.
Michelle L. Quinn is a freelance writer.
Mother and Son Movie Night
Portage IMAX 16 Theater, 6550 U.S. 6, Portage
Lineup starts at 5 p.m., movie starts at 6:30 p.m. May 1
$40 per mother and son duo; $15 per extra son; $10 nonresident fee; must preregister
219-762-1675 or https://rec.portage-in.com/CourseActivities.aspx?id=4&cat=1