The Athena Cinema and Ohio University Harry Potter Alliance will add a touch of magic to Sibs Weekend for the third consecutive year with a 12-hour Harry Potter marathon.
The marathon will feature the first four Harry Potter films intermixed with trivia games, a costume contest and raffles for prizes. Food from the wizarding world will also be served, including Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans and a potion drink.
Alex Kamody, director of the Athena, said the theater has alternated between showing the first and last half of the series the past two years. Although attendance was consistently good, the first four drew a slightly better turnout, and she is excited to see if a similarly strong crowd will attend this year.
“It just seems like a good match for Sibs Weekend,” she said. “We feel like it really fits the needs of both the OU events going on with Sibs Weekend and the community with people just wanting to get out of the house and do something fun.”
Kamody said the Harry Potter marathons have drawn people of all ages to the theater, from young children to college students to adults.
“I think that Harry Potter just appeals to all ages, so it seems like we really get a good mix with the audience,” Kamody said. “Their love of Harry Potter is pretty steady. It’s got some lasting power.”
The Harry Potter Alliance will run the trivia and costume contests throughout the day. Alexis Bennett, vice president of the Harry Potter Alliance, said the group brainstorms and searches trivia books to find questions that coincide with each of the films and uses social media to judge costumes. Winners will be given Harry Potter-themed prizes provided by the Athena.
Bennett, a junior studying English and world religions, said the Harry Potter marathon is a good opportunity to do something fun and family-friendly during Sibs Weekend, especially with younger brothers or sisters.
“Personally, my siblings are both younger than me and they aren’t really into a lot of the activities aimed at younger sibs,” Bennett said in an email. “But we’ve always been a Harry Potter family and watching the movies brings us back to when we were younger, before I moved away. It’s very sentimental for us and I think that can appeal to people, especially this weekend.”
Bennett encourages moviegoers to attend the marathon and embrace the opportunity to break out their best wizarding gear.
“This event is always such a wonderful time,” she said in an email. “Everyone is so excited to watch the movies and be surrounded by others that love the franchise.”
