By Jonathan Meyer
One of my earliest childhood memories is of my parents ushering my siblings and me into the family station wagon, and treating us to a movie at the local drive-in. I can remember the smell of popcorn wafting through the warm summer air as we found a spot for the car and settled in, waiting for the sun to drop below the horizon. Often, I’d be fast asleep on the back seat long before the movie ended.
While drive-ins might be a thing of the past, thankfully, the open-air cinema experience is not. Now in its sixth season, the Galileo Open Air Cinema is as close as Capetonians can get to the drive-ins of yesteryear. And dare I say, they may have even improved the experience as a whole.
From 31 October until the end of April 2018, Galileo hosts almost nightly screenings of a long list of films suitable for all ages and tastes. On Tuesday evenings, Bloemendal Wine Estate in Durbanville hosts Galileo’s big screen, while Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden and the V&A Waterfront serve as the venue on Wednesday and Thursday evenings respectively. Fridays see Galileo’s silver screen head off to a rotating venue across the city, while Saturday evenings are reserved for film watching at selected estates in the Cape winelands. Kelvin Grove in Rondebosch takes up venue duties on Family Sundays, meaning there’s somewhere to watch a film under the stars almost every night (weather permitting).
Ticket prices are reasonable, ranging from R89 for a standard ticket, going up if you’d like to hire blankets (R10 extra) and backrests (R20 extra). There’s even a couples ‘Snuggle’ deal for R320, which will reserve you a mattress, blanket, pillow and chocolates in a private section of the audience. Adding to that, there are a number of food and beverage vendors on-site, meaning you’ll be able to fuel up on delicious goodies before the film starts.
For more information and a detailed movie schedule, visit thegalileo.co.za
Photography: Courtesy image