On Saturday 12th September over 500 people attended, what’s believed to be Ely’s first ever Drive-In Cinema, at Lancaster Way Business Park.
Over the course of the day there were three separate screenings; starting with Moana, where the children also received art activity packs, followed by The Hunger Games and then the evening finale - Grease; which had been sold out within days of release.
This Library Presents’ funded event was organised by Babylon Arts and supported by Lancaster Way Business Park.
Many attendees arrived dressed-up for the screenings, particularly for Grease, which saw plenty of audience members singing-along from within the comfort and safety of their own cars.
The organisers have been flooded with positive feedback and requests that they organise more Drive-In events, and are therefore considering whether this is possible. As Claire Somerville, chief executive of Babylon Arts explains “We’re so delighted with how well the Drive-In went and how keen people are to see it happen again. Our first Drive-In was delivered in partnership with The Library Presents and with support from Lancaster Way Business Park, whom we’d like to thank for helping to make it such a success. The event was a huge and expensive undertaking, but with so much demand for it to happen again, we’re exploring the possibilities for a future event.”
A representative from The Library Presents, the Cambridgeshire-wide scheme that brings more live arts to libraries commented: “After having to postpone our live programme in the libraries due to the Covid-19 lockdown, we wanted to look for ways to help bring cultural experiences to Cambridgeshire and a Drive-In Cinema seemed like a great option. We are very grateful for all the hard work and expertise that Babylon Arts put into the Drive-In to make it a runaway success.”
Harvey Bibby of Grovemere Property Limited the owners of Lancaster Way Business Park said “We are extremely pleased to have been able to support Ely’s first drive in cinema and congratulate Claire and her team for what they have achieved in providing this successful event for the local community during such challenging times. We will continue to support Babylon Arts with their exciting arts programme and look forward to the next Big Screenings.”
