Volunteers keep historic theatre alive

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This article was published 01/10/2020 (2074 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

NEEPAWA — A more than a century-old building isn’t an easy thing to keep viable, but for the community of Neepawa, the Roxy Theatre building has been well worth the work and expense.

The most recent effort — a marquee restoration — is currently underway and is expected to be completed within the next couple of weeks.

The building’s upkeep and restoration is an almost constant challenge, but Neepawa Theatre Centre chair Kate Jackman-Atkinson said the community’s support has consistently supported the effort.

“I think that everyone in town has a memory of the Roxy, whether it was standing on stage as a student, coming with your family, seeing some of the great entertainment that comes through …” she said. “It’s a safe place for kids to go and have an enjoyable entertainment opportunity.”

Following a screening of “Sonic the Hedgehog” in early March, the theatre temporarily closed due to COVID-19 pandemic concerns. It has yet to reopen.

Given the extra work and safety concerns related to the pandemic, Jackman-Atkinson said the board has been reluctant to reopen the theatre for movies. Aside from a paid caretaker and projectionist, the facility, which is owned and operated by the not-for-profit Neepawa Theatre Centre board, runs on the work of volunteers, and she said it would have been a big ask to have them come back during the pandemic.

“We don’t want to alienate our volunteers because without them this place doesn’t run — it doesn’t run without the volunteers, at all.”

Plus, Jackman-Atkinson said, it’s difficult to cover the costs associated with bringing in a new movie at 30 per cent capacity, so with COVID-19 regulations changing all the time, it’s difficult from a financial perspective to plan weeks in advance.

The volunteer board that operates the theatre found a silver lining in their forced temporary closure, in that it has allowed them unfettered access to the space to undertake a restoration of the building’s marquee and facade, for which they secured approximately $43,175 in funding earlier this year.

This funding includes a $5,000 storefront improvement grant from the Town of Neepawa, $10,000 from the Beautiful Plains Community Foundation and $12,175 from the province via a Manitoba Heritage grant. Red River Mutual’s Spruce Up Your Story initiative pledged approximately $16,000 but has expressed interest in upping their pledge in the event more is needed.

“We’re really thankful for the support from the community and the granting organizations,” Jackman-Atkinson said, adding that if not for them the theatre would soon fall into disrepair.

The project, which is expected to be completed within the next couple of weeks, will fully restore the marquee to its historic former glory of 1940 (following a renovation at the time that shifted it away from its original Neepawa Opera House design as it was constructed in 1906), only with energy-efficient LED lights. The marquee restoration cost approximately $24,500, while panting the rest of the facade was $17,000.

“We have to keep it in line with the building’s heritage, but this is a really key part of Neepawa’s history — one of the older buildings in town, and a large historic building, so I think it’s important to preserve that going forward,” Jackman-Atkinson said.

The marquee restoration is but the latest in a long line of building restoration and maintenance projects, which she said successive boards of directors have been consistently proactive in taking care of to keep the aging building up to snuff.

A major roof repair took place approximately 10 years ago, which was followed a couple of years later by a $100,000 investment in digital camera equipment, which Jackman-Atkinson said they managed to raise money for “in significantly shorter time than they thought it would take,” alongside other projects.

Their success in funding these projects proves the community and funding partners see value in the structure, which Jackman-Atkinson said is available to the community for not only movies, but also school drama productions, Manitoba Theatre Company shows, private rentals and various other community needs.

“No matter what group you’re talking about, people use it,” she said.

At $8 for adults, $4 for children and $6 for youths, movie tickets have remained affordable, albeit more expensive than the cost of moving picture shows in 1911, when they were 25 cents for adults and 10 cents for children.

Between building maintenance, their digital upgrade and the addition of accessibility devices for the visual and hearing impaired, Jackman-Atkinson said the theatre has remained relevant and viable long into the future.

It’s unclear when the theatre will reopen for movies, and Jackman-Atkinson said it will depend on the state of the pandemic.

 

» tclarke@brandonsun.com

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