Top 25 Outdoor Movie: Mary Poppins (sing-along version)

For one of our final Top 25 Outdoor Movies, we’d like to review Mary Poppins, the 1964 Disney musical classic starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke. The film is loved by all generations, and would make an excellent selection for your next outdoor movie event.

The sing-along version presents some great opportunities to engage your audience. Here is the original trailer for the film (it’s amazing how trailers have changed!):

Mary Poppins is one of those classic films your entire community will love — it still captivates children everywhere while being memorable for older generations. The movie is set in London, England, and is based on the book series by P. L. Travers (great works of literature in their own right).

The story follows youngsters Jane and Michael Banks (brother and sister) and their adventures with their new nanny, Mary Poppins. She takes the children on a series of adventures to places they’ve never dreamed of — merry-go-rounds with live horses, rooms with laughing old men who float in the air, and tea parties on the ceiling!

Mary Poppins comes from a time when Disney films were really more musicals than anything else, so it’s full of unforgettable tunes such as “A Spoonful of Sugar” and “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.”

If you can get the sing-along version, you’re guaranteed to have your entire audience joining in on these classic songs. The families in your community will really enjoy the event, and the children will never forget the experience.

There are some really great pre-show activities with this film, and a magic show would fit right into the theme. You could even find a magician who can perform Mary Poppins’ bag trick — pulling out item after item, even though there doesn’t seem to be enough room.

Your community would definitely be impressed, and it would make the event memorable. We know we say this all the time, but we’d love to hear from anyone who has hosted Mary Poppins as an outdoor movie! Please post your stories in the comments section below.