To celebrate the installation of a new digital movie projector and an upgraded sound system, Edmond Town Hall will host free screenings of Gravity and Frozen Sing-A-Long this weekend.

Ingersoll Auto of Danbury, which has provided free movie nights one weekend each month since January 2013, will cover the cost of admission for anyone who attends the 7 or 9 pm screenings of Gravity on Friday and Saturday, April 25–26. The company, owned by Todd Ingersoll of Newtown, will also cover the tickets for anyone who attends a 4 pm screening of Gravity.

In addition, Ingersoll Auto will cover tickets for those who attend screenings of a special sing-along version of Disney’s Frozen Sing-A-Long on Saturday, April 26, at 1 pm.

Ingersoll Auto has already provided the Free Saturday Movie Night for April — the 7 pm screenings of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty on April 19 were covered by the auto group — but Todd Ingersoll said on April 22 that the additional movie tickets for this weekend are being offered simply because he loves his hometown so much.

“It’s true,” he said with a laugh Tuesday afternoon. “This is the weekend that they’re formally launching the digital projector, and the new screen, so we said ‘Hey, why don’t we buy the movie tickets for Friday and Saturday, for the whole town?’

“It’s a nice thing to be able to give back to the community who’s given so much to us,” he said.

In Gravity, a medical officer (Sandra Bullock) on her first mission in space and a veteran astronaut (George Clooney) on a routine spacewalk find themselves fighting for their lives when their space shuttle is destroyed, leaving them tethered to each other and floating in the vast blackness of space.

The picture was the winner of seven Academy Awards including Best Director for Alfonso Cuaron’s spectacular work on the project. In addition, Bullock received a nomination for Actress in a Leading Role for her performance as the medical officer. 

The film is rated PG-13, and it has a running time of 1 hour, 31 minutes. It also stars Ed Harris.

It is at Edmond Town Hall through April 30. Regular movie admission is $2.

Additional evening screenings of Gravity are scheduled for Sunday through Thursday, April 27-30, at 7 pm. Additional matinees are planned for Sunday, April 27, at 4 pm; and Tuesday, April 29, at 1 pm.

Released in January, Frozen Sing-A-Long is a special sing-along version of the Academy Award-winning film Frozen. The viewing experience is similar to the original film, but with the addition of the song lyrics and a snowflake bouncing on the words as the songs play.

This film is rated PG and has a running time of 1 hour, 48 minutes.

In addition to Saturday’s free screening of Frozen Sing-A-Long, Edmond Town Hall Theatre will offer a second screening on Sunday, April 27.

The installation of an NEX digital movie projector in the historic building at 45 Main Street caps a year of extensive theater renovations.

The board of managers, with help from volunteers and donors, has been working to install technology that will keep 21st Century audiences coming back.

Energy efficient LED lighting, Wi-Fi, a quality sound system and even a new, retractable movie screen have been installed.

Don Gamsjager and his company, DNR Labs, began work at Edmond Town Hall in March 2013, said Mr Gamsjager, bringing the electrical service up to date for traveling shows.

“Edmond had a movie theater 1970s system that is only good for movies, and no public address system,” Mr Gamsjager said in January.

Lighting in the audience area of the theater has been redone, along with new theatrical stage lighting. Overhead, the solid white light in the theater’s dome ceiling has been replaced with an LED color changing skyscape system.

Within the past year, the ballroom of the third floor Alexandria Room was restored and repainted, a new kitchen was installed, and a bride and groom suite was put in place behind the stage. Infrastructure work, including roofing, electrical, and security monitoring are all upgrades most people will not notice, but were badly needed, ETH Board of Managers member Mary Fellows told The Bee in January.

Ingersoll Auto of Danbury was also able to help close a financial gap the board of managers had that same month. Todd Ingersoll presented a check for more than $17,000 on January 21, representing the balance needed to finish the installation of the theater’s Blu-Ray technology.

Edmond Town Hall, dedicated in 1930 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, was a gift from Newtown benefactress Mary Elizabeth Hawley. It has served as the heart of Newtown since its inception by providing residents with governmental services space; affordable family entertainment through its theater; sports opportunities in its gymnasium; and elegant space rentals to help residents gather or celebrate life events.

The cornerstone of the former town hall was laid in 1929.

Movie tickets, the building’s board of managers are quick to point out, have not increased from $2 per person due to the upgrades.

To celebrate the installation of a new digital movie projector and an upgraded sound system, Edmond Town Hall will host free screenings of Gravity and Frozen Sing-A-Long on Friday and Saturday, April 25-26.