Parker Posey is coming to Northeast Portland's Hollywood Theatre on Saturday, Sept. 12, for a screening of her 1995 cult hit Party Girl and a post-film conversation with the audience.
The event pairs the indie-film icon with one of Portland's most storied movie houses during its 100th birthday year. The Hollywood Theatre, at 4122 NE Sandy Blvd., turns a century old on Friday, July 17.
The nonprofit-run cinema opened on July 17, 1926, as a 1,500-seat silent-movie palace and vaudeville house, the last venue in Portland built for both purposes. The neighborhood liked it so much that the surrounding Hollywood District took its name from the building. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1983, the theatre is the only cinema in Oregon screening films in 70mm, according to its website.
The centennial celebration kicked off the week of Friday, July 10, with a 35mm showing of the theatre's original 1926 opening-night film, More Pay – Less Work, accompanied by the house Wurlitzer pipe organ. The Posey screening extends that celebration into the fall.
"Parker Posey isn't just the queen of indie films — she introduced and embodied the genre for an entire generation of cinephiles," Hollywood Theatre programmer Anthony Hudson said in a press release announcing the event. Hudson, a multidisciplinary artist who has overseen the theatre's Queer Horror series since 2015, will lead the on-stage conversation with Posey after the 7 p.m. screening.
The appearance is a partnership with Rose City Comic Con, Portland's annual pop-culture convention, which runs Sept. 11–13. Posey will also appear at Comic Con on Sept. 12, and Sept. 13.
In Party Girl, Posey plays Mary, a New York City scenester who lands a job at a library after police bust one of her illegal raves. The role cemented her status as an indie-film icon, leading to parts in The House of Yes, Best in Show, Waiting for Guffman, and a recent turn as an eccentric socialite in HBO's The White Lotus.
How to get tickets
Half of the seats go to Hollywood Theatre and Movie Madness members through a lottery drawing. The lottery is open at hollywoodtheatre.org and closes Saturday, July 19. The remaining tickets go on sale through Rose City Comic Con at rosecitycomiccon.com starting at 10 a.m. Monday, July 21. Prices range from $60 to $120.
Upcoming community events
- Friday, July 17: Hollywood Theatre centennial birthday, 4122 NE Sandy Blvd.
- Saturday, July 19: Hollywood Theatre member ticket lottery closes for the Parker Posey screening (hollywoodtheatre.org)
- Monday, July 21, 10 a.m.: Remaining Parker Posey screening tickets on sale via Rose City Comic Con (rosecitycomiccon.com)
- Friday, Sept. 11–Sunday, Sept. 13: Rose City Comic Con, Portland
- Saturday, Sept. 12, 7 p.m.: Party Girl screening with Parker Posey, Hollywood Theatre, 4122 NE Sandy Blvd. $60–$120
