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Saving
the past
By Rebecca Aistrup
Kinsley and Greensburg have two of the oldest theaters in Kansas. Both have been registered with the Kansas Historical Theater Association. The two communities are currently working on restoring their theaters and have found help from an expert in the field of interior surface restoration: Geoffrey Steward, president of the International Fine Arts Conservation Studios Inc., in Atlanta. "He is able to look at an restoration process and develop a preliminary cost estimate for the community," said David Jenkins, president of the Kansas Historical Theater Association. Last week, Steward and Jenkins toured theaters in Topeka, Salina, Emporia, Augusta, Wichita, Garden City, Greensburg and Kinsley that are being restored. Steward is known nationally and across the world for his work on many different historical places. He has been involved in restoration work in the Buckingham and Kensington palaces, the House of Parliament and the Foreign Office in London, as well as the state capitals of Ohio, Pennsylvania, Alabama and Tennessee. The Twilight Theater board hired Steward because of his expertise in theater restoration.
When it was opened in 1917, the Twilight Theater in Greensburg was a 750-seat opera house, but now it is a 400-seat movie theater, Herd said. One of the most unique things about this theater is the ornate tin ceiling. "The tin ceiling is a unique aspect to the theater," Steward said. "It can be repainted to look very grand." About 80 percent of movie theaters and opera houses built in the United States prior to 1935 have been either destroyed or turned into something other than a theater. "The fact that this theater still exists is amazing," Jenkins said. "They could turn this theater into a tourist attraction." That is just exactly what Herd has visions of seeing happen with the theater. "I think we have the niche in this town, because of its location to turn it into an attraction, so when people come in here they will take a look and say 'Wow!'" Herd said. Once Steward had a chance to tour the theater, he was able to assess what should be done. He presented a glimpse of his report to the Twilight Theater board members. "There will need to be some remodeling and repairs done, but it is in good shape," Steward told the board. Steward also recommended that new lighting be installed and the ceiling painted a proper color.
After Steward's presentation, board members were able to ask about some of their concerns and possible ideas. One of the most important concerns they had was how to come up with the money to restore the building. Jenkins said his job is to lend support to the community and help them seek out some grant money to support the restoration process. "Nothing in a theater is an exact science, but it is your theater and not ours," Jenkins said. "You have to take chances. You will probably lose money the first couple of years of operation, but you have got to lose money in order to make money. It will take a couple of years to find your niche with an audience. When we establish our budget for you we, allow a little cushion for those couple of years when the theater could lose money." The majority of the money should come from the community, including citizens, city and county governments, Jenkins said. The next step is to go to the state and get money from the historical society and tourism commission, then go to major companies and foundation corporations to get money. "You got to show how much money you are getting from the local people first," Jenkins said. Steward should have his preliminary budget and report completed in two to three weeks for the Twilight Theater and the Palace Theater board to look at. Even though there has not been much work done to the Twilight Theater, the Palace Theater in Kinsley has already had some restoration work done to it. The Palace Theater has many unique features, that were hidden from the general public for many years. It was not until the past few years that those hidden treasures have been revealed to the public. The theater opened in either 1912 or 1917, said Fred Burgess, director of the Edwards County Economic Development Corporation. It was owned privately until 1986, when it was sold to a group of local investors. They operated the theater for 11 years and then sold it to Sam Brown, a local businessman. Brown spent many hours and money restoring the theater to the way it may have looked when it opened, but it did not succeed financially. A group of local investors then bought the theater at an auction in June 1999 and have incorporated it into a non-profit organization, Burgess said. "The architectural design of the theater is a shoebox," Burgess said. "It designates the shape of being long and narrow." There were originally 312 seats in the theater and now there are 140 seats. But the plan is to increase the seating capacity to 200 and incorporate seating in the balcony. Many of the fixtures in the Palace Theater are original including the ceiling, the fire screen and the proscenium arch. The old sound system has also been restored. "This theater is stunning," Jenkins said. "My jaw just fell open when I saw it. The vitaphone sign is very rare and had to have been put in place when talking sound started." Once Steward had a chance to tour the theater he noticed there needed to be some kind of baffling on the walls to absorb echoes. "This theater has a nice feel to it," Steward said. "It will not be difficult to redo, we just need to add to what you have already got and not take away from it." |
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Movie House History - Classic
Theaters Of Kansas © 2007 |
