The Wonka Express
All Aboard!!!
School is out and it’s time for some fun. The Warner Theatre, Naugatuck Railroad and Fascia’s Chocolates are willing to comply and together they have planned an event for Thursday, July 6th, to engage the whole family.
Designed around the iconic film, Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory, the event includes a ride and dinner aboard the Wonka Express, a chocolate-making workshop at Fascia’s Chocolates in Waterbury, and a screening of Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory at the Warner Theatre in Torrington.
During the show popcorn will be available for purchase from the Nutmeg Fudge Company and passengers will receive commemorative chocolate bars, four of which will contain a “golden ticket,” good for a special chocolatier experience at a later date.
These elements are based on a popular 1964 children’s book written by British author Roald Dahl that has been transformed into several movies. This tour de force focuses on the 1971 portrayal by Gene Wilder, considered to be among his finest roles and for which he received a Golden Globe nomination.
Willie Wonka, the hero of the tale, is the mercurial owner of a chocolate factory. Contemplating his own retirement, he is seeking a successor with whom he can share his closely held recipe for chocolates. So he hides five Golden Tickets amongst his famous Wonka bars, the finders of which will be given full tours of his factory as well as a lifetime supply of chocolate.
During the tour, Wonka tempts each of the children to disobey his orders, revealing their character flaws. Eventually only Charlie Bucket, a poor boy who lives with his widowed mother and invalid grandparents, remains, but even Charlie fails when he samples Wonka’s experimental Fizzing Lifting Drinks, which temporarily give the drinker the ability to levitate.
An angry Wonka abruptly dismisses Charlie but the boy, rather than taking revenge for the broken promise by sharing the recipe for the Everlasting Gobstopper with Wonka’s chief rival, places the candy on Wonka’s desk before departing. Wonka perceives the boy’s good and honest heart and reveals that the actual prize is ownership of the chocolate factory after Wonka’s retirement.
Wonka reminds Charlie not to forget what happened to the man who got everything that he ever wanted: "He lived happily ever after."
Whether the riders of the Wonka Express will live happily ever after cannot be known but all the elements are there for an entertaining afternoon and evening. Up to 175 passengers will board the Naugatuck Railroad’s special train at the Railroad Museum of New England, 242 East Main Street in Thomaston at 4 PM. Since 1996 the museum has been operating historic passenger trains between Waterbury and Torrington.
The first stop will be a Fascia’s Chocolates in Waterbury where patrons can try their own hand at making chocolate under the tutelage of expert chocolatiers. Perhaps inspired to pursue a whole new career, they will reboard the train at 5:30 PM. to proceed to Torrington.
Patrons will have a choice of ham, turkey or peanut butter and jelly sandwiches during the trip served with fruit juice, water, chips and a cookie.
The train will pull into Torrington at 6:30 PM and passengers will stroll to the Warner Theatre for the film screening. The train departs on its return trip at 9 PM.
The cost for the excursion is $45 per passenger, coach; $69 per passenger for the lounge; make-a-bar at Fascia’s $10, and popcorn at the theatre $2.
For information contact 860-283-7245; info@rmne.org or at the link below.
