New Wayne Theatre effort to support local arts

The Wayne Theatre Alliance will create a Local Arts Fund which will be available to local performance groups to offset costs associated with using the Wayne Theatre /Ross Performing Arts Center.

“For groups accustomed to using local churches and public school auditoriums at little or no fee, the cost of using the Theatre might be a surprise,” reported Tracy Straight, Executive Director. “However, our survey of quality facilities confirms that our rates are competitive, if not below market value. We do not want the cost to be an obstacle to making the venue available to the tremendous talent that exists locally.”

The long-awaited opening of the restored Wayne Theatre/Ross Performing Arts Center will provide an opportunity for the area’s arts groups to perform in one of the best-equipped, intimate theatres in Central Virginia, and the fund will endeavor to make the Center affordable to local groups by offsetting the normal use rates. The venue will have all the technical support needed for first class productions. The new auditorium with its hydraulic orchestra lift, fly loft, wings, and lighting, sound, and projection equipment, and its ample backstage space and dressing rooms for performers are unmatched.

“A building like the Ross Center has fixed costs and the Alliance has to cover the overhead,” said Bill Hausrath, chair of Alliance Board of Directors. “We would love to make the spaces available for free, but that is simply not possible.”

From its inception, the Wayne Theatre Alliance has worked to not only save the shuttered movie house, but to make it an asset to the community. That included providing a first-class performance facility for local arts groups. Realizing the overhead at the Wayne Theatre may preclude some of the local non-profit arts organizations from being able to rent the facility, the Alliance has committed to bridging the gap between the financial reality of operating the facility and the ability of some arts groups to cover the rental fee.

The campaign will begin immediately so that arts groups can secure the funds to schedule performances in the theatre beginning in the fall of 2016. Donors can earmark their funds for specific arts organizations or make their donation thru the Community Foundation of the Central Blue Ridge.

For more information, contact Dr. Clair Myers, Executive Director of the Wayne Theatre Alliance at540-943-9999 or by email [email protected].