Happy birthday, Joss Whedon! Bookmans is the proud sponsor of the Tempe and Tucson Can't Stop the Serenity 2007 screenings, part of a worldwide charity effort to benefit international and local women's organizations.
CSTS 2007: Tempe Edition
at the Harkins Centerpoint
Thurs., June 21, 2007 at 7 p.m.
Tickets available at all Bookmans locations. Tickets $11.50 (includes handling fee), $12 day of show.
CSTS 2007: Tucson Edition
at the Loft Cinema
Sat., June 23, 2007 at 7 p.m. (doors open at 6 p.m.)
Tickets available at the Loft box office, in person or by phone (520) 795-0844. Tickets $10 in advance, $12 day of show.
Double header with the "Buffy the Vampire Slayer Sing-Along", sponsored by Heroes & Villains. Tickets are $5 and sold separately.
PRESENTED BY THE ARIZONA BROWNCOATS
What you can expect at the screenings:
- A costume contest with prizes. (Tucson's will be a Whedonverse battle royale open to Firefly/Serenity and Buffy/Angel costumes.)
- A general $1/ticket raffle featuring a large assortment of prizes donated by national CSTS sponsors Dark Horse Comics, Quantum Mechanix, Done The Impossible, BenBella Books, several local businesses, and several items autographed by Joss Whedon himself. The more tickets you buy, the more chances you have to win. (To see a complete list of donators, please visit the Arizona Browncoats website.)
- Another raffle will feature gift crates filled with items inspired by the crew of "Serenity," including Jayne hats, juggling geese, floral bonnets, toy dinosaurs, Chinese lanterns, and other goodies. Tickets will be $3/each or 2 for $5.
- A chance to enter a drawing for the Browncoat Cruise 2007. Each participating city nationwide will pull one lucky person to be entered into the national drawing for a free set of passes. This is a five day cruise on the Carnival Elation, which leaves San Diego on Dec. 1, 2007, and returns Dec. 6. Guests so far include Ron Glass, Michael Fairman, Clare Kramer and The Bedlam Bards.
- A limited number of official event t-shirts and other "Serenity"-related goodies will be available for purchase at the venue.
All profits from t-shirts and the raffles will go towards the overall donation to Equality Now and local charities GIFT (Tempe) and Women's Foundation of Southern Arizona (Tucson). Only cash will be accepted at both venues so be sure to hit the ATM before heading to the theater.
Both the Tempe and Tucson screenings will be hosted by members of the acclaimed and popular Phoenix-based Slice of SciFi podcast. Slice of SciFi regularly features interviews with the biggest names in science fiction entertainment as well as timely and irreverent fan commentary.
In June 2006, nearly 50 cities in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, coordinated screenings of the 2005 film "Serenity" to celebrate creator/director Joss Whedon's birthday. All proceeds benefited Whedon's favorite charity, Equality Now, an organization dedicated to ending violence and discrimination against women and girls around the world. When all was said and done, the "browncoats" - fans of the series "Firefly" and its spin-off film "Serenity" - had raised over $65,000USD for the charity, proving that fandom can be a powerful force when banding together for a common cause.
Last year's Tucson screening was a huge success, bringing in over $5,000 for Equality Now - the second highest gross for a single screening worldwide, and making it one of a handful of events to ever sell out the 500-seat Loft Cinema. At a Valley Art screening in Tempe last September, an additional $4,000 was raised, putting the Arizona Browncoats' total contribution to Equality Now last year at over $9,000.
This year, Can't Stop The Serenity 2007's goals are simple: to try and surpass the amount raised last year. The Arizona Browncoats have stepped up to the plate with two back-to-back "Serenity" screenings this year: one at the Harkins Centerpoint in Tempe on Thursday, June 21, and a return of the Joss Whedon double header with "Serenity" and Heroes & Villains-sponsored "Buffy the Vampire Slayer Sing-Along" at the Loft in Tucson on Saturday, June 23.
Local charities will benefit as well: 20% of Tempe's overall proceeds will go to GIFT (Growth Improvement for Female Teens), an organization dedicated to building safe environments and communities for girls to grow, and 20% of Tucson's overall proceeds will benefit the Women's Foundation of Southern Arizona, who work to advance women’s leadership and philanthropy by raising, managing and granting money to meet the unique needs of women and girls.
"At GIFT, we believe that girls are resilient, powerful, and community leaders," says GIFT Executive Director and founder Kristin Parrack. "We are proud to work with the Browncoats on this project and appreciate their generous support of women and girls in our community."
"Given our respect for the important work of Equality Now, the Women's Foundation of Southern Arizona is pleased to be an additional recipient of the proceeds for the event," says WFSA Executive Director Laura Penny. "We share a committment to fostering equity and opportunity for women and girls."
"Thanks to Bookmans, and all of our other generous sponsors, the Arizona Browncoats have the opportunity to provide first rate entertainment in both the Phoenix and Tucson areas within the same week, while providing much needed funding to both national and local charities," says screening coordinator Chris Lagemann. "It's an honor and a privilege, not to mention loads of fun, to help carry on the charitable work of Joss Whedon, an avid proponent of women's rights."
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