Podtalk: Programmer Kyle Cubr on ‘Godzilla vs. Music Box (Theatre)’ from June 7-13, 2024

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CHICAGO – Run for your lives, Chicago, or run to the historic Music Box Theatre for “Godzilla vs. Music Box,” an unprecedented mega-festival celebrating the 70th Anniversary of the World’s Most Famous Reptile. Besides presented by the Music Box and the Japanese Arts Foundation, GvMB is programmed and curated by Kyle Cubr, Music Box Senior Operations Manager by day, Godzilla Enthusiast through at all other times. The series unspools from June 7th-13th, 2024, for schedule, tickets and details, click GvMB for tickets/details.

Godzilla is a prehistoric and reptilian “kaiju” (monster), awakened and empowered after many years by nuclear radiation. With the nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki still fresh in the Japanese consciousness, Godzilla was conceived as a metaphor for nuclear weapons, among other metaphors (as Kyle explains in the Podtalk below). The selection of films reflects the international and iconic pop culture status of the “King of the Monsters,” who has appeared in 33 Japanese films produced by Japan’s Toho Studios, five American films, and numerous video games, novels, comic books, and television shows. It’s good to be the King.

There Goes Chi-ca-go: ‘Godzilla vs. Music Box’
Photo credit: MusicBoxTheatre.com

The Opening Night on Friday, June 7th, will feature two of the most recent Japanese entries in series, “Shin Godzilla” (2016) and last year’s Visual Effects Oscar-winning “Godzilla Minus One.” Between the films, Saira Chambers of the Japanese Culture Center/Japanese Arts Foundation will lead a panel discussion, “Godzilla, the Atomic Age Anti-Hero,” featuring Dr. Yuki Miyamoto and other guests. Dr. Miyamoto is a professor at DePaul University whose work focuses on nuclear ethics and the cultural aftermath of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Other highlights include a 24 hour marathon of all 15 “Showa-Era” (1954-75) on Saturday, June 8th, and a Godzilla Y2K-era double feature on Sunday the 9th. “Destroy All Monsters” (1968) has a special screening is on Monday, June 10, introduced by legendary horror host SVENGOOLIE, who will also be signing autographs in the Music Box Lounge from 5:30-7:30pm. For info, click the link above.

Senior Operations Manager Kyle Cubr has been a Music Box Theatre “distinguished person of many roles,” having begun at the theatre ten years ago as a concessions worker, and performing diverse tasks including rentals, website input, floor managing and programming.

In a Podtalk with Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com, programmer Kyle Cubr of “Godzilla vs. Music Box” provides the background …

In a video clip, Kyle gives the pitch …

By PATRICK McDONALD Editor and Film Critic/Writer HollywoodChicago.com pat@hollywoodchicago.com