A single movie ticket at the Stanford Theatre in downtown Palo Alto now buys admission to two Hollywood classics back to back. The Wizard of Oz and Mary Poppins are sharing the bill at the 221 University Avenue venue, with screenings running Thursday through Sunday through Nov. 8, and moviegoers can watch either film first.
According to The Mercury News, The Wizard of Oz screenings begin at 5:35 p.m. and 10 p.m. on Oct. 29-30, Oct. 31-Nov. 1, Nov. 5-6 and Nov. 7-8. Mary Poppins follows a slightly different pattern: showtimes are set for 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 29-30 and again on Nov. 5-6, while Oct. 31-Nov. 1 and Nov. 7-8 add an earlier 3:05 p.m. screening alongside the 7:30 p.m. slot. Because one ticket covers both films, patrons can catch the ruby slippers and the flying umbrella in the same visit.
Admission is priced at $7 for adults, while youth admission for those 18 and under and senior admission for those 65 and older are each $5, the outlet's report notes. The theater sits in downtown Palo Alto, a short distance from the Caltrain corridor that runs through the city.
A Movie Palace Built for Classic Film
The Stanford Theatre is often described as a 100-year-old movie palace, though a statement from the Stanford Theatre itself pegs its construction to 1925 — accounts that place the building's age either at a century old or dating specifically to that year. The nonprofit Stanford Theatre Foundation now operates the venue, and the organization says it is dedicated to the preservation and proper exhibition of films from the Golden Age of Hollywood, per the same materials.
That mission shows up in how the theater presents its films. The Stanford Daily reports the venue emphasizes historical authenticity, including 35mm projection, live organ performances, vintage intermissions and double features of the kind now pairing Oz and Poppins. The Almanac adds that the theater has screened classic films ever since its earlier era, from the silent era through Hollywood's golden age, with music from the theater's Wurlitzer organ accompanying the silent movies.
The theater mostly screens titles from its original tenure, and its festivals spotlighting classic movie stars and directors draw audiences of more than 100,000 annually, according to the same Almanac report. The Stanford Theatre reopened in 1989 following a restoration backed by the Packard Foundation, that outlet notes, giving the building a second life as a nonprofit screening house decades after it first opened its doors.
Pairing Two Beloved Family Films
Double features aren't new territory for the Stanford Theatre. Palo Alto Online reported that the venue once scheduled back-to-back screenings of Meet Me in St. Louis and The Wizard of Oz, pairing Judy Garland musicals in a similar format to this year's Oz-and-Poppins combination. The theater's printed summer program that same year also listed a standalone Wizard of Oz screening, underscoring how frequently the 1939 classic returns to the Palo Alto screen.
That return followed a forced absence: Palo Alto Online also reported the theater reopened in July 2022 after the pandemic and renovations had shuttered it for more than two years. The current Oz-and-Poppins pairing arrives as part of the theater's ongoing calendar of classic double bills, continuing a presentation style the venue has leaned on for years.
