The 1970s BBC TV show “Monty Python’s Flying Circus” occasionally introduced comedy sketches with the line: “And now for something completely different.” Which is how I felt when I saw a news release about Des Moines Performing Arts’ plans to promote four shows that will appear this fall at the Des Moines Civic Center.

Three of this season’s musical stage shows — “Dirty Dancing,” “The Bridges of Madison County” and “The Wizard of Oz” — are based on popular movies, which will be shown at the Fleur Cinema & Cafe at no charge a week or so before live performances begin at the Civic Center. 

A fourth show, by the dance troupe Pilobolus, will also be preceded by a free movie, the documentary “Still Moving: Pilobolus at Forty,” commemorating the 40th anniversary of the unusual group’s founding.

Free screenings of movies with ties to stage performances are not new for Des Moines Performing Arts, but this season is the first coordinated effort with multiple films. And it is the first time Fleur Cinema has been involved as a partner, said Cindy Hughes Anliker, communications manager for Des Moines Performing Arts.

The idea came from Des Moines Performing Arts’ education team led by Eric Olmscheid, Hughes Anliker said.

“We’re always looking for unique ways to engage our audiences, ways to connect them to what we’re bringing to the Des Moines Civic Center, and we thought this was a great way to do it,” she said.

“The current season has a lot of shows that had movie adaptations, so we thought, ‘Why not prepare our audiences by hosting free film screenings prior to the stage versions at the Civic Center?” she said. 

The dual performances on screen and on stage should provide insights on the different media, as well as showing how stories can evolve.

Hughes Anliker said that’s especially true for “The Bridges of Madison County,” a story many Iowans know because it takes place here and was written by an Iowan, Robert James Waller. 

Audiences will notice two differences immediately between the movie and stage versions, she said: the involvement of the community and the music.

Waller’s 1992 book and the 1995 movie focused on the two central characters, while the stage adaptation tells a larger story about the Iowa community where the action takes place.
But the real reason to see the live performance is for the music, Hughes Anliker said. The Broadway production of “Bridges” won Tony Awards for best original score and best orchestration, by composer Jason Robert Brown.  

Audiences will notice fewer differences between the 1987 movie and the new stage version of “Dirty Dancing.” A Washington Post review of the touring company said the stage show is not “an example of great and artful theatrical innovation. … But is it really fun? Yup.”

The Post review also noted that the 1963 setting has been updated to include mentions of “civil rights, Vietnam, and class conflict” and includes choruses of “We Shall Overcome” and “This Land is Your Land.” All of which were absent from the film version. 

“The Wizard of Oz” is a whole other story, which I’ll share when we get closer to its Des Moines performance in December. 

The schedule for the free Fleur Cinema shows and dates for the companion stage shows at the Civic Center are:

“Dirty Dancing”: Fleur Cinema, 7 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 3; Civic Center stage show, Sept. 15-20.

“Still Moving: Pilobolus at Forty”: Fleur Cinema, 7 p.m., Sunday, Nov. 1; Civic Center performance, Nov. 10. 

“The Bridges of Madison County”: Fleur Cinema, 7 p.m., Thursday, Nov. 19; Civic Center stage show, Nov. 28-Dec. 5.

“The Wizard of Oz”: Fleur Cinema, 7 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 10; Civic Center stage show, Dec. 15-20.