Page 30 - July 2017 inLeague and Conference Program

Challenges continue

Unlike the Stiefel Theatre in Salina, the Paramount doesn’t lure patrons from hundreds of miles
away.

“We are isolated,” Hukill said, referring to the west Texas city. “We draw from small
neighboring towns.”
Some years, she said, the theater makes a profit. Other years, it squeaks by.

Diane Fallis, business director at the McPherson Opera House, says many restored historic
theaters continue to face financial challenges after the final nail is driven and the stage
curtain once again rises.

“The challenge is to raise enough funding to keep the doors open,” Fallis said. “Fundraising
never stops. Every year, we try to boost memberships, show sponsorships and named gifts.”

The McPherson Opera House, built in 1889, underwent a $8.5 million makeover that included
new seating and advanced audio-visual and lighting options in the 488-seat auditorium.
Work was completed in 2010, after a three-year renovation.

The building, in downtown McPherson, is used for concerts and other live performances, film
and lecture series, weddings, and community programs.

Fallis said two-thirds of the opera house’s operating costs is covered by private donations
and memberships. Additional revenue is generated by a one-half percent guest tax from
the McPherson Convention and Visitors Bureau to pay for marketing costs; ticket sales;
sponsorships; and facility rentals.

In addition to the auditorium, the three-story opera house includes meeting rooms and a
90-person capacity ballroom/banquet hall on the top floor. Current tenants include the
Visual Arts Association of McPherson and Luke’s Barbershop on the first floor; a financial
advisers office on the second floor; and McPherson Arts Alliance, which rents space within
the Mary Anderson Arts Center, in its lower level. The west portion of the opera house
contains commercial businesses.

“The intent is for the building to be used as much as possible and benefit as many people as
possible,” she said.

Hukill, at Abilene’s Paramount, said maintaining an aging historic building and making sure
programming is timely are also hurdles to leap.

“You have to stay flexible to accommodate the changing times,” she said.
TRIO OF THEATERS

Name: Stiefel Theatre
Address: 151 S. Santa Fe Ave., Salina, Kansas
Population of Salina: 47,707
Originally opened: 1931
Restoration completed/reopened: 2003
Description: The completely renovated Art Deco-
style theater, with state-of-the-art sound and
lighting, is a major concert venue in the Midwest,
booking 30 to 35 shows a year. The 1,287-seat

PAGE 28| INLEAGUE League of Historic American Theatres