California’s Academy Museum to open with ‘The Wizard of Oz’ screening

The Academy Museum of Los Angeles will be opening up the live screenings of the 1939 classic movie ‘The Wizard of Oz’ after a long wait by the visitors, according to statements released by the management on Wednesday.

‘The Wizard of Oz’ theme was a decades-long initiative of the Academy, which is also responsible for deciding the recipients of the Oscar Awards. However, the project came across multiple hurdles including a deficit in funding, delays in construction and the most recent one being a halt in operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The first in-person event to be hosted by the museum, which is scheduled for September 30, 2021, will be a live screening of the renowned American classic ‘The Wizards of Oz’ followed by live musical orchestra played by the American Youth Symphony. 

Also Read: As COVID cases rise, US governors refuse to put on mask mandate

The museum is also set to feature multiple recognisable artifacts and souvenirs from movies. A gown used in the 1934 flick ‘Cleopatra’ and a space suit from the more recent movie ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’ will take the centre stage at the museum. 

The museum will be spread across 300,000 square feet of land, out of which 50,000 square feet of area has been reserved for the gallery. The gallery is set to explore the film ‘Wizard of Oz’s screenwriting, casting, make up designs, costumes, and stars such as Judy Garland, according to reports from AFP.

Most California coronavirus restrictions have been lifted, although Los Angeles County recently reinstated mandatory indoor mask wearing even for the vaccinated, as Delta variant cases rises.