Center Theatre hoping to screen eminent domain film

DOVER-FOXCROFT — The Center Theatre is hoping to show the movie “Little Pink House” at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 23. Based on a true story, the movie is about a group of neighbor’s fight with corporate and political interests who want to use eminent domain to take their property. The Center Theatre needs to get 86 advance reservations in order to show the film.

“The movie is being distributed through Tugg.com,” said Patrick Myers, the Center Theatre’s executive director. “They require 86 advance reservations before they will let us show the movie. We have until Aug. 16 to get those reservations and bring the movie to town.”

Myers says that while the movie’s subject of eminent domain is important in area communities, there are other reasons it should be interesting to a local audience. The subject of the movie, a small-town paramedic named Susette Kelo, originally lived in Millinocket. Kelo’s story and her fight to save her home, went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, inspired a nation and helped millions of other Americans protect their homes.

The movie’s director, Courtney Moorehead Balaker, has been in touch with the Center Theatre and is excited at the possibility of having the movie screened in Dover-Foxcroft, “Often times politicians say they’re standing up for the ‘little guy’ in these redevelopment efforts when in fact, the little guy gets pushed around. ‘Little Pink House’ is not just a story about eminent domain abuse. It’s about the struggle between the ‘insiders’ and the ‘outsiders’ in these cases. One of my biggest goals in making this film was to shed a bright light on the fact that this type of abuse often targets poor and rural communities — people without connections to the city officials and multi-billion dollar companies that hold the power.”

To help bring the movie to the Center Theatre, interested people should either visit the Center Theatre website or go directly to https://www.tugg.com/events/little-pink-house-_2dk. Tickets must be reserved in advance, but patrons will not be charged for the tickets until all 86 have been reserved. For questions or more information on any Center Theatre program, go to www.CenterTheatre.org, call the theatre at 564-8943 or visit the box office during regular business hours at 20 East Main Street.

The Center Theatre is 501(c)3 nonprofit with a mission of making arts, culture, education and entertainment accessible to our rural communities.