Plaza Theatre’s Stage Hosts Local and National Performing Talent
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Everything old is new again at the Plaza Theatre, which is enjoying a successful renaissance since reopening in 2001.
The historic theater in downtown Glasgow first opened its doors in 1934, and like many theaters of its day spent the next several decades being adapted and revamped to cater to new film technology and changing audience tastes. Over time the movie projectors stopped, and the Plaza fell dark in the 1990s.
Enter city officials, particularly then-Mayor Charlie Honeycutt, who saw the theater as a golden opportunity for the city. After purchasing it for $200,000 in 2001, the city spent the next four years renovating and upgrading the space using a combination of city funds, grant money and private donations. Finally, the refurbished Plaza opened to the public again in April 2005 – and the results have exceeded all expectations.
“It’s been a great success,” says Steve Jones, executive director. “The city is very pleased with how things have turned out. And every year we bring in groups and acts that nobody ever thought would come to Glasgow, which is exactly what we set out to do.”
The theater rarely shows movies these days, but instead offers a steady stream of concerts, local productions and touring shows. The Plaza Performance Series presents five or six events a year, and the venue is in constant demand for local groups and events. In fact, the 1,064-seat theater often draws a crowd not only from Glasgow, but also from cities as far away as St. Louis, Nashville and even Chicago.
“We’ve only got 14,000 people here in town, so we do have to reach to other places with our marketing,” Jones says. “But we have a good turnout for our season subscription shows, and we pull from a four- and five-state area for big events.”
For some, having a fully operational theater in town has meant being able to do things on a grand scale.
“We’ve been doing shows in there since it reopened, and it’s wonderful to have it,” says Todd Woodward, who teaches art at Highland Elementary School and directs high school drama and choral productions.
“It’s definitely an improvement from the high-school gym,” Woodward says. “It seats so many people and has a beautiful stage area. We still need to do a few things in there, such as add the ability to use backdrops that will raise and lower, but it really is a wonderful place.”
Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella will be the students’ spring production and is scheduled for April 18-20.
In addition to ongoing maintenance and planned renovations – a historically restored marquee is high on the wish list – the theater’s staff is working on its new office space next door. The former Bowle’s Print and Gift Shop is being renovated to administrative and support space, something the Plaza desperately needed.
“I’m working out of the concession stand now, and our technical director has a folding table on the stage, so this is definitely something that we’ve been looking to do,” Jones says.
Story by Joe Morris
Photo by Staff Photo
