Movie showing fundraiser celebrates 30th anniversary of ‘new’ Cain Park theater

When you watch the movie “Those Lips, Those Eyes” starring Frank Langella and Tom Hulce, you’ll notice a strong resemblance to Cain Park. That is because this coming-of-age story, about a young man who works behind the scenes at a summer theater in the 1950s, was actually filmed at Cain Park in 1979.

The movie doesn’t look exactly like Cain Park does today though, because it was filmed before the amphitheater’s major renovation. The film provides not only a look at life in the 1950s in the Heights and the rest of the country, it's also a real historical documentation of the original Cain Park. Back then, Cain Park's amphitheater did not have a roof, and the show was usually over if it started raining hard. Also, the theater had stone and concrete boxes and wooden benches, rather than the seats it has today.

It was the filming of the movie that caused the theater’s renaissance. By the late 70s, it had fallen into disrepair. The production company invested a large amount of money to refurbish the theater for the film. It was that restoration that enabled Cain Park to start the ambitious theater, dance and concert programming it has presented every summer since.

To celebrate the 30th anniversary of the film and of Cain Park as we know it today, the Friends of Cain Park will present a one-time showing of “Those Lips, Those Eyes” as a fundraiser at the Cedar Lee Theater on Sunday, Feb. 21, at 2 p.m. The event will include movie, candy, popcorn, pastries, wine and other beverages.

Tickets for the benefit are $30 each. For reservations, send a check and names of attendees to Friends of Cain Park, 2195 Delaware Drive, Cleveland Heights, OH 44106. For information, contact popcycles@sbcglobal.net or 216-791-5149.

Freelance writer David Budin is the president of Friends of Cain Park, which raises money to sponsor or co sponsor shows at the park, especially family-friendly fare, and some shows that are presented for free to the community. Friends of Cain Park also provides three $1,000 scholarships per year to graduating Heights High seniors to help them continue their studies of visual, musical and dramatic arts at the college level.