The paper-pushers of Dunder Mifflin will make one last stop in Scranton before closing their doors next month.
"The Office" Wrap Party will celebrate the upcoming conclusion of the Scranton-set television show with several activities throughout the city on Saturday, May 4. The event was announced between the seventh and eight innings of Thursday's Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders game.
A group of cast and crew members from the show - which ends its nine-year run on NBC on Thursday, May 16 - are expected to attend. An official announcement about who will participate will come next Thursday, said Timothy L. Holmes, regional director of marketing & events for Times-Shamrock Communications.
"We do know there's definitely a strong contingent of writers and cast members coming out," he said.
The party will kick off at 8:30 a.m. with a mix-and-mingle breakfast for fans and bloggers at the University of Scranton. A panel discussion with writers from the show will follow at 11 a.m., also at the university. Tickets are $10 for the writers' panel or $15 for the panel and breakfast.
A free parade in downtown Scranton featuring folks from the show will start at 2 p.m. and lead to a free street festival, which will run until 5 p.m. and feature some "bands and fun activities," Mr. Holmes said. The parade route has not yet been finalized.
Events then will wrap up with a Farewell Celebration at PNC Field at 7 p.m. The party will include activities like a cast question-and-answer session, remarks from the show's executive producer Greg Daniels, screenings of bloopers from the show and a sneak peek at the series finale, Mr. Holmes said. Tickets for the celebration will start at $7, and seating is limited.
Tickets for the day's events will go on sale Monday, April 15, online at theofficewrapparty.com. The wrap party will take place rain or shine.
Put on by a partnership between Times-Shamrock Communications, the city of Scranton, Lackawanna County Convention & Visitors Bureau, Lackawanna County, the state, the University of Scranton, WBRE-TV and the Greater Scranton Chamber of Commerce, the wrap party comes nearly six years after "The Office" Convention. In October 2007, thousands of fans plus cast and crew members from "The Office" descended on Scranton for several days of meet-and-greets, panel discussions and fun. The turnout was "spectacular," Mr. Holmes said, and organizers knew they wanted to replicate it one day.
They stayed in touch with Mr. Daniels since the convention, Mr. Holmes said, and proposed the wrap party last fall. He pointed out the wrap party takes the convention and simplifies it into one day, and he said Mr. Daniels like the idea of what they had planned.
"He said it works well with the sensibilities of the show," Mr. Holmes said.
The Office Wrap Party Web site: http://theofficewrapparty.com
The Office Wrap Party Facebook: http://facebook.com/TheOfficeWrapParty
Contact the writer: cheaney@timesshamrock, @cheaneyTT on Twitter