(RAHWAY, NJ) -- The Union County Performing Arts Center Film Fest opens with a screening of Singin' In The Rain on Friday, May 16, 2025.  Join them for the Opening Ceremony and the feature presentation, a digital screening of a classic film that celebrates the art of motion pictures! Doors are at 6:00pm, showtime is 7:00pm. 

Singin’ in the Rain is a 1952 American musical romantic comedy film directed and choreographed by Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen, starring Kelly, Donald O’Connor and Debbie Reynolds, and featuring Jean Hagen, Millard Mitchell, Rita Moreno and Cyd Charisse in supporting roles. It offers a lighthearted depiction of Hollywood in the late 1920s, with the three stars portraying performers caught up in the transition from silent films to “talkies”.

IMDB summarizes the movie as “A silent film star falls for a chorus girl just as he and his delusionally jealous screen partner are trying to make the difficult transition to talking pictures in 1920s Hollywood.” – IMDB.

Tickets are $18 (plus fees) and are available for purchase online.  Union County Performing Arts Center (UCPAC) is located at 1601 Irving Street in Rahway, New Jersey.

The Opening Ceremony begins at 7:00pm with Keynote Speaker, Lamar Mackson. He is is a Producer and Assistant Director from Plainfield NJ. His most recent work on Alex Stapleton’s “Tawana” and “How Music Got Free” gained his induction into the Director’s Guild of America. Lamar’s love of film began as a kid when he used to visit the iconic Liberty Theater on Front Street for weekend matinee screenings.

His credits include The Cooking Channel’s PATTI’S PLACE with Patti Labelle, Damages starring Glen Close, KITCHEN NIGHTMARES featuring Gordon Ramsay, EXTREME HOME MAKEOVERS, Viacom’s THE MONTEL WILLIAMS SHOW, THE PHIL DONAHUE SHOW, as well as Spike Lee’s SUMMER OF SAM to name a few. Mackson also served as Assistant Director on the hit hidden camera show IMPRACTICAL JOKERS on TruTV seasons 1-4.

He has also worked on mainstream projects for NICKELODEON, AMAZON, ATT, NFL, HBO, Paramount Plus, and MICROSOFT along with many others. Mackson notably served on the AD staff for Justin Timberlake’s “MIRRORS” and First Assistant Director for acclaimed Director and SCANDAL actor Tony Goldwyn.

Lamar currently runs Nonstop Show Group, a film & tv production company, is the founder of the Queen City Film Festival, now in its 8th year and also launched the careers of many students through the Future Film Club. The Film Future Club is an afterschool program that

provides free training in film & television production for students interested in careers in the film & television industry.

Lamar served on the board of the Neighborhood Health Center, is a member of the Board of Directors of the Plainfield YMCA and currently serves as Chairman of the Union County, NJ Motion Picture & Television Advisory Board.

Union County Performing Arts Center (UCPAC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization offering comedy, concerts, and more at two venues: UCPAC’s historic Main Stage and UCPAC’s modern Hamilton Stage. Located in Rahway, New Jersey, and built in 1928, it is listed on the State and National Register of Historic Places. UCPAC is the perfect setting for an evening of great entertainment.