Rapids Theatre Restoration Project: A Case Study

Rapids Theatre Restora.on Project Fieldwork by Tammy Hoppe Life4me Member of This Community

1

Theatre Balcony A stunning view of the first level stage from the second level balcony shows were dinner guests once sat at tables ea4ng their meals.

The mission of the Rapids Theatre board of directors is to restore this historic relic of architecture to be used as an event center, with this part of the theatre being completed first so the building can be opened for event rental, genera4ng more income to help supplement the top (third) level renova4ons budget.

2

3

Projector in Projector Room The en4re projector is s4ll assembled in the projector room propped up at the back of the second level balcony.

The Rapids Theatre restora4on project is dear to me because of my community’s as well as my own personal history with the building. Throughout my life I have experienced this loca4on as a cinema, interior design store, fabric and quil4ng outlet, dinner theatre, restaurant, and abandoned treasure.

4

5

Stairs Detail These stairs lead to the second level theatre balcony. This is one of several staircases joining the upper and lower levels of the Rapids Theatre.

The Rapids Theatre has been a notable part of this community for almost 100 years—the building was erected in 1916.

Besides having housed diverse businesses, this loca4on has welcomed celebri4es such as Lawrence Welk and his orchestra in the once glorious third level ballroom (J. Telford, personal communica4on, November 1, 2014).

6

7

Restored Balcony A view of the newly revealed and restored balcony now overlooks the top of the Rapids Theatre marquee.

The restora4on of the Rapids Theatre was begun in 2011 thanks to the foresight of Jackie Telford and MaY Dengler, who first realized this building is a diamond in the rough and then had the ambi4on to pull it back to its original days of glory.

8

9

Front Windows These windows flank the east side of the newly revealed front balcony and are the first windows to have been replaced and restored in the Rapids Theatre restora4on project.

These are the correct style of windows on the front (north) wall of the building, but there was a conflict with the windows ordered for the west wall of the building. The correct style of window will be ordered and installed this winter (2015).

10

11

Plaster Lath Detail The final remaining sec4on of one hundred-­‐year-­‐old plaster lath gets removed before interior walls can be restored.

Although the exterior has been fully restored to its original theatre appearance, the interior is s4ll in deconstruc4on. Interior walls have been cleared of plaster and lath or simply removed altogether.

12

13

Skeleton of Interior Walls All plaster lath has been removed from the interior walls, revealing outdated electrical work and other things in need of repair.

With more recent not-­‐to-­‐ code construc4on having been removed, it’s obvious that outdated electrical and other interior work s4ll has to be brought up to contemporary building code regula4ons. Today’s work must specifically meet requirements for Na4onal Register of Historic Places.

14

15

Piles of Plaster and Lath The ceiling of the orchestra pit has been removed from the floor and hauled to the trash.

Clean-­‐up a`er deconstruc4on takes 4me and lots of volunteer work.

“We have had a lot of volunteer labor—lots of volunteers—but we need more than that; we need money to keep going” (D. McCormack, personal communica4on, November 22, 2014).

16

17

Third Floor Access These beau4ful stairs lead guests to the third level of the Rapids Theatre building, which is the ballroom.

Third floor access is structurally sound, as is the rest of the building, but will be completed last in the restora4on project.

18

19

Ballroom Graffi.

Children of the previous building owners painted graffi4 with their friends in several places on the historic ballroom walls.

Restora4on of this third level will encompass the majority of the budget.

Opening the first floor for event and stage rental will generate income to help fund the ballroom restora4ons.

20

21

Original Rapids Theatre Row Chairs The original Rapids Theatre rows of chairs have been set aside un4l a later date when they too can be aYended to.

Original sea4ng will be reinstalled where possible, awakening local community member’s memories of the past and s4rring the imagina4ons of visi4ng facility guests.

22

23

The RaFers and Holes in the Floor The ra`ers are in great shape and will remain so now that the exterior roof has been restored.

The old wood floors are not so lucky, though. Due to decades of a leaky roof, the wood floors are warped and roYed. Much of the flooring has to be replaced.

24

25

The Orchestra Pit The orchestra sat up above the dance floor of the ballroom where Lawrence Welk has performed.

Reminding the community of exci4ng local histories can be beneficial in numerous ways: • Teach diverse cultures to coexist peacefully • Promote understanding of culture and heritage • Strengthen community rela4onships • Grow outstanding learning experiences found in your home community (Villeneuve, 2009)

26

27

Salvaged Original Doors Many of the original Rapids Theatre doors were able to be salvaged and will be restored in due 4me.

As many original features as possible have been reclaimed and will be restored and reused in the Rapids Theatre restora4on project.

28

29

The Original Front Rapids Theatre Doors These original front doors of the Rapids Theatre have been restored and reinstalled at the he`y price of $18,000.

Although the façade and front entrance of the Rapids Theatre appears finished to passers-­‐by, it currently func4ons more accurately as a warm welcome that invites patrons of the past and dreamers of the future to visit the memories of what used to be and the visions of what is yet to come with the restora4on of this segment of a small town’s big history.

30

31

Resources • Villeneuve, P. & Sheppard, D. (2009). Close to home: Studying art and your community. Art Educa,on, 62(1), 6-­‐13.

32

Rapids Theatre Façade 33

Chapter 2 Rapids Theatre Restora4on Project: A Case Study

34

Rapids Theatre Restora4on Project: A Case Study Tammy Hoppe University of Florida

35

Table of Contents Introduc4on. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Suppor4ng Literature. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 Descrip4on and Discussion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 Implica4on for Art Educa4on. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .50

36

Rapids Theatre Restora4on Project: A Case Study I chose to do my fieldwork at the Rapids Theatre, which is now in the process of being restored to the beau4ful historic piece of architecture it once was. The façade of the Rapids Theatre (Figure 1) appears finished to passers-­‐by, but the cold, naked skeletal structure exposed in the building’s interior is far, far from finished.

Jackie Telford and MaY Dengler had the foresight three years ago to conceive of and then coordinate the renova4on of Rapids Theater, a small town relic of a building with quite a history (J. -­‐-­‐Telford, personal communica4on, November 1, 2014). I s4ll remember going to movies in this very theatre when I was a child.

Figure 1. Rapids Theatre 4cket booth and front doors. This image shows the fully restored main entry of Rapids Theatre.

37

Over the years I have seen this building serve several different func4ons. Now I have been doing my fieldwork assignment here, giving myself the opportunity to leave my own mark on this historic piece of architecture. The progress of this building’s restora4on can be followed at hYps:// www.facebook.com/pages/Rapids-­‐Theatre/ 205426966201220, where, upon project comple4on, a calendar of dinner theatre performances and pictures of theatre events will be posted for the dedicated friends and patrons of the Rapids Theatre to follow.

Suppor.ng Literature

The inspira4on for my work on this field study began with informa4on from Villeneuve and Sheppard’s (2009) ar4cle,

“Close to Home: Studying Art and Your Community.” This ar4cle explains that art educa4on with a community-­‐based approach gives art educators a local emphasis to use when introducing and expanding curriculum.

The benefit of this approach is that students as well as teachers get a new opportunity to no4ce the treasures that lie close to home but may be taken for granted or misunderstood (Villeneuve, 2009). Rapids Theatre is one of our liYle hometown treasures that had been forgoYen but is now being brought back to life through extensive renova4on. Villeneuve’s (2009) ar4cle reminds readers that the study of community-­‐based art educa4on (CBAE), such as this local architectural restora4on project, can teach that (a) different cultures can coexist peacefully; (b) community-­‐based art projects promote beYer understanding of 38

personal culture and heritage; (c) collec4ve contribu4ons and collabora4ve work strengthen community rela4onships; (d) many outstanding learning experiences can be found in your home community. All four of these points hold value to me in my educa4onal philosophy and thus affect my choice of curriculum and teaching methodology.

Stake’s (1994) work, “Case Studies,” is another inspira4on in my field research.

First, his content gave me a founda4on for understanding what a case study is and does.

My own case study is the study of an architectural treasure and its renova4ons that hold both the poten4al to quality for the Na4onal Register of Historic Places as well as the ability to be used as a beau4ful, fully func4oning event center, theatre, and cinema. According to Stake’s (1994) list of

three types of case studies, the Rapids Theatre project is an intrinsic case study “because, in all its par4cularity and ordinariness, this case itself is of interest” (p.

237). It is not intended to be an instrumental case study that has a place in understanding some other case study, nor is it a collec,ve case study that is intended to help with understanding the meaning of a whole group of case studies (Stake, 1994). Second, Stake’s content also guided me in the nature of informa4on I should be looking for. Stake (1994) offers a well-­‐rounded list of especially helpful research content topics: • the nature of the case; • its historical background; • the physical serng; • other contexts, including economic, poli4cal, legal, and aesthe4c; • other cases through which this case is 39

reorganized; • those informants through whom the case can be known (p. 238).

Finally, Stake’s (1994) content truly enlightened me to the value of triangula4on as a method of seeking mul4ple percep4ons in order to verify consistency in data.

Because of this new learning I purposefully and consistently interviewed four different stakeholders in the Rapids Theatre restora4on project.

My final inspira4on in my own field study project is King-­‐Ratcliffe’s (2014) capstone project. King-­‐Ratcliffe interviewed three teaching ar4sts in the CBAE sector and shared her findings in such an eloquent and comfortably readable manner. Her data gathering process was the interview, which yielded an entertaining narra4ve report format. I intend to use King-­‐Ratcliffe’s

wri4ng style as inspira4on for my own repor4ng of interview data in my case study research project. Addi4onal inspira4on in my qualita4ve method of interview data collec4on comes from Ribbins (2007) and his thoughts on what makes quality interview ques4ons as well as on the different forms an interview can take. Ribbins’ (1994) most beneficial sugges4ons for my own research project include, first, asking ques4ons that encourage interviewees to reveal what is on their minds without sugges4ng desired answers and, second, knowing that there are different ways of interviewing such as chats, discussions, interviews, and verbal ques4onnaires. This new knowledge enabled me to explore three different interview data collec4on strategies: chat, discussion, and verbal ques4onnaire. The data collected through these methods was 40

very interes4ng and consistent among par4cipants.

Overview

The mission of the Rapids Theatre project is to restore this historic relic of architecture to the beau4ful theatre, cinema, and ballroom it once used to be. The goal of the project’s board of directors is for this building to be used as an event center, with the first floor sea4ng and stage as well as the second level balcony (Figure 2) to be completed first so the building can be opened for event rental, genera4ng more income to help supplement the third floor renova4ons budget. Jackie Telford and MaY Dengler are the founders of the project and started their advocacy work in 2011. The current Rapids

Figure 2. Rapids Theatre Stage from Second Floor Balcony. The balcony lines the west, north, and east walls and was once housed sea4ng for dinner guests.

41

Theater board of directors includes Jackie Telford (co-­‐founder and president), MaY Dengler (co-­‐founder and vice-­‐president), Norma Jansma (treasurer), Dorothy McCormack, Julie Tolvstad, Shane Meyer, and Pete Perngill. The board has largely been coordina4ng legal business with an architecture firm in Des Moines that is in charge of designing period-­‐accurate architectural detail and also gerng the legal paperwork completed for the Na4onal Register of Historic Places. They then organize the hands-­‐on work of local volunteers based on their informa4on from the architecture firm. On the third Thursday of each month they hold mee4ngs to coordinate communica4on and keep progress moving along.

Once the Rapids Theatre restora4on project is completed, the building will be available to rent for events such as recep4ons, dinner theatre plays, reunions, etc. There will be no kitchen but there will be a food prepara4on area for caterers or renters to use. The first floor is the stage level and the second floor is the theatre balcony, projector room, and small apartment with balcony. These two levels will be restored first, probably by the end of summer 2015. The final level to be restored is the third floor, or the ballroom, which will also be available to rent either separately or in conjunc4on with the theatre and balcony levels. The long-­‐term plan is that the boYom two floors of the building can soon be rented out, genera4ng an income to supplement a por4on of the third floor restora4on budget.

42

To date, all of the project funding has come from dona4ons, Forster Charitable Trust funds, and Lyon County Riverboat Founda4on (LCRF) grants (J. Telford, personal communica4on, November 8, 2014).

Dona4ons have come from several locals as well as friends and family of locals or at least fans and patrons of theatre arts in general.

The Forster Charitable Trust funds are a local private gran4ng and funding en4ty in the name of a prominent family of this community’s history. The Grand Falls Casino in the same county sponsors the generous LCRF gran4ng and dona4ons program.

Future restora4on budget money will come from these same resources but they provide 4mely and somewhat limited funds compared to the overall budgetary needs of the restora4on project. With the projected sum budget being two to three million

dollars, a rigorous fundraising plan is of dire need. Therefore, to aYain the goal of comple4ng the en4re restora4on by 2017, the Rapids Theatre board of directors is collabora4ng on other more notable income ideas, one being a matching funds challenge in which the local banks and other businesses are challenged to match dona4on amounts with those of the general public. I will be helping with this endeavor by purng together more research and documenta4on as well as presen4ng preliminary ideas for educa4onal materials such as fliers and pamphlets.

43

Descrip.on and Discussion

I s4ll remember going to movies in this very theatre when I was a child. I especially remember three different movie-­‐going adventures: one with my whole family wai4ng in the freezing cold to get 4ckets to see a Christmas movie, another with my group of best friends all cuddling closely during the saddest parts of Windwalker (1981), and a third one with my liYle sister and brand new foster sister when I saw a boy and girl kissing for the first 4me.

The project par4cipants I interviewed shared stories similar to these about their own memories of the theatre. They appeared equally as passionate about their vivid recollec4ons of Rapids Theatre as they did about their commitment to achieving the restora4on goals. Signs of these high levels

of commitment can easily been seen in the volunteers’ presence and hands-­‐on work many Saturday mornings throughout the summer and fall months. Some Saturdays are workdays on which they clean, move, deconstruct, touch up, mark, observe, or discuss some of the necessary tasks.

Completed tasks to date (November, 2014) include removing all doors from doorways and moving them to the basement to be stored un4l it is their turn to be repaired and restored, removing walls and other construc4on addi4ons that are not historically accurate, pulling all plaster and lath from remaining walls, and gerng outdated insula4on out of the ra`ers all the way up to the roof (R. Oliver, personal communica4on, November 15, 2014). Also completed is the roof, renova4on of the balcony level and marquee, replacement of 44

the south windows, and restora4on of the original front theatre doors and exterior façade. Telford clarifies that the cost of gerng the work this far along is $201,000 and that the big expenses are coming next (personal communica4on, November 8, 2014).

Projected project tasks include an elevator that will go all the way to the third floor, redoing or replacing all interior surfaces, new electrical and other specialty work inside the walls, and huge double hung windows for the west wall. “We need an elevator and that’s going to cost big money: big money” (R. Oliver, personal communica4on, November 22, 2014). “An elevator has to be put in somewhere but we can’t put it where we wanted to because of all the city’s wires in the ground, and it would cost way too much to move all those wires. We just need to

think of another way” (N. Jansma, personal communica4on, November 22, 2014). The elevator discussion has already revealed one of the larger project expenses, and troubleshoo4ng possible solu4ons is ongoing.

In addi4on to preparing the stage for dinner theatre performances and the floors for dining tables and chairs, the project board of directors is planning to make showing movies a possibility once again. The necessary equipment to show movies in the theatre will cost $70,000 (R. Oliver, personal communica4on, November 22, 2014). The original film projector s4ll sits in the projector booth at the back of the second floor balcony level appearing anxious to run its next reel of film (Figure 3).

Although this machine is historically valuable, it is no longer necessary and will 45

not be restored as part of this overall project.

Over the years I have seen this building take on several different func4ons. A`er first remembering it as a theatre, I recall when it was used as an interior design and window treatment store. Next, it was a fabric, quil4ng, no4ons, and sewing machines store.

A`er that it was converted into a ritzy restaurant and lounge (The Intermission) that opened and closed three different 4mes over the years. Today the building is in the process of returning to its original appeal.

The project con4nues to move along slowly although consistently. As funding becomes available and proper architectural informa4on gets approved and passed on to contractors, stages of restora4on take place with the help of numerous volunteers. New windows will be installed this winter on the west wall and then first floor and balcony

Figure 3. Original Rapids Theatre Film Projector. The projector s4ll sits in the projector room and all of the machine’s parts are s4ll assembled.

46

restora4ons will take place during the summer of 2015. By the fall of 2015 Rapids Theatre may be ready for event rental, genera4ng its own income to assist with the budget for top floor renova4ons that will be taking place last. With consistency in volunteer help and improvements in funding income, this en4re restora4on project could be completed as early as 2017. Although it would be wonderful to have the building ready sooner, everything in the process appears strong and effec4ve because of its consistency in progress, support, and leadership. The board of directors is doing all it can do to keep each step of the restora4on process moving along in an acceptable legal and affordable manner. To add my own element of support, I will design poten4al printed, digital, and online educa4onal materials and I will con4nue my research and

documenta4on of the Rapids Theatre restora4on project.

Implica.ons for the Field of Art Educa.on

As an art educator with a growing involvement in and commitment to the restora4on of Rapids Theatre, I see tremendous benefits in the field of art educa4on with studying and helping out in a project such as this. As Villeneuve (2009) warned, stronger community connec4ons and awareness of local culture and heritage are greatly heightened in this type of work.

Addi4onally, the intrinsic rewards that accompany the collabora4ve work of collec4ve assistance are extremely gra4fying.

These are learning experiences visual arts teachers can provide children in a school arts educa4on program simply by including a 47

study of an architecturally interes4ng or historically relevant building right in the school’s home community. Otherwise, a community-­‐based art educa4on program can either work on or in such an interes4ng alterna4ve site for art educa4on. Even if students do not take up a hands-­‐on role, they can s4ll develop a personal interest in or commitment to local history and culture through the study of community architecture.

My personal connec4on to the Rapids Theatre restora4on project at the beginning of my study definitely influenced my poten4al for a greater level of growth and high quality learning. Students might not be able to begin a similar study with the heartelt relevance I had because they likely would not have the fond memories upon which to build new learning. To overcome

the learning advantage I had with my already developed personal connec4on to the structure, an art educator should begin the study of a local architectural celebrity with careful considera4on of how to get students to draw personal connec4ons to the project.

The art educator would have to design alterna4ve methods for genera4ng student interest and commitment through avenues such as historical and cultural connec4ons, mathema4cal challenges, scien4fic mysteries, architectural and design elements, or storytelling possibili4es.

Further studies of this theory could be done right in the art classroom or even at loca4ons within walking distance of the art classroom. Studies could also be conducted in conjunc4on with homeroom teachers’ learning ac4vi4es such as fieldtrips or explora4ve excursions. The key ques4ons 48

in such research might be “what elements of a site-­‐based learning ac4vity draw the greatest levels of student interest in and commitment to new learning?” and “how can new site-­‐based learning ac4vi4es be designed so that these same draws of interest and commitment are present each 4me?” I feel these are ques4ons teachers are already asking themselves regularly, but a conscious study of such informa4on would greatly inform and strengthen an art educators’ curriculum planning and teaching methods.

49

References

King-­‐Ratcliffe, M. (2014), A study of three teaching ar,sts working within a community-­‐based arts educa,on seDng.

Ribbins, P. (2007). Interviews in educa4on research: Conversa4ons with purpose. In A. Briggs & M. Coleman (Eds.), Research methods in educa,onal leadership and management (pp. 207-­‐223). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publica4ons, Inc.

Stake, R. (1994). Case studies. In N. K. Denzin & Y. S. Lincoln (Eds.), Handbook of qualita,ve research (pp. 236-­‐247). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publica4ons, Inc.

Thomas, E. B. (Producer), & Merrill, K. (Director). (1980). Windwalker [Mo4on picture]. United States: Santa Fe Interna4onal.

Villeneuve, P. & Sheppard, D. (2009). Close to home: Studying art and your community. Art Educa,on, 62(1), 6-­‐13.

50

51