Lyric Theater gets grant, sets date for opening

Lyric Theater gets grant, sets date for opening
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This is one of the three auditoriums at The Lyric Theater in downtown Wooster, all of which feature plush seating and other amenities to enhance the viewing experience.

                        

The Lyric Theater has been awarded a grant of $100,000 from the Stanley C. Gault Philanthropic Leadership Fund, a fund administered by the Wayne County Community Foundation. The grant, along with a successful effort by the community to match an anonymous $200,000 challenge grant issued late last fall, brought the $3.2 million capital campaign to a close on Dec. 31.

Having reached this milestone, the nonprofit’s board of directors announced the Lyric Theater will open its doors to the public with a series of celebratory grand opening events the first week of February.

The Downtown Arts Theater Inc., the nonprofit doing business as The Lyric, received a similar award in 2021 to support the purchase of the facility and the early phase of renovation.

“The Gault Leadership Fund was one of the first sources of funding to turn this dream into a reality. Now it is one of the last,” said Gregory Shaya, board president of the nonprofit. “The Lyric Theater will be another outstanding testament to Stan Gault’s legacy of community-based philanthropy.”

A public ribbon-cutting ceremony is scheduled for Friday, Feb. 7 at 3:30 p.m. outside the theater’s entrance on 116 E. South St., followed by special programming open to the public throughout the weekend. Saturday festivities will be family friendly and include a Wooster Children’s Film Festival with films curated by the New York International Children’s Film Festival, made possible by a grant from the Laura B. Frick Charitable Trust. An encore presentation of the same films will be held Sunday.

“We could not be more excited to share news of our opening with this community,” said Jeremy Thomas, managing director of The Lyric. “I’d like to thank everyone who has lent us both support and patience as we worked hard to get to this moment.”

The list of supporters includes more than 400 private donors from Wayne County and beyond. Numerous others including local nonprofits, businesses, the State of Ohio, the City of Wooster and managers of independent cinemas across the U.S. collaborated to offer support. The board is especially thankful for the help of Scott Savage of Arborhill Consulting, who provided grant writing support.

“I have been amazed and truly moved by the outpouring of support for this project,” said Cameron Maneese, VP of the board and co-founder of the Downtown Arts Theater Inc. “Everything from donations to letters of support, to creative brainstorming and offers to volunteer, the support has been overwhelming.

“It has been so gratifying to see The Lyric come to life. We are so grateful to the community for all the support and happy to finally be able to say, ‘See you at The Lyric; we saved you a seat.’”

The largest of the three auditoriums features recliners, custom booths and high-top tables. Some recliners include tray tables and articulating armrests. The smallest auditorium offers recliners with tray tables. The midsize auditorium is equipped with rocker-style seats, sofas and flexible seating arrangements for live events.

The concession stand will offer a variety of options including popcorn, soda, candy, nachos, pretzels, hot dogs, frozen drinks, ready-to-drink cocktails, beer and wine. Additionally, a self-serve beer machine will feature a rotating selection of Ohio beers, seltzers and ciders.

Included on the calendar of upcoming events are films like “Paddington in Peru,” “The Brutalist” and a series of Oscar-nominated shorts. Upcoming live events include “Love Letters” for Valentine’s Day, starring Dick Figge and Sally Patton; magic and comedy by Tim Hill; The Thomas Neptune Band; an Irish band for St. Patrick’s Day; and a performance by The Shawshank Big Band.

Updates will be posted on The Lyric’s social media channels and via a new website scheduled to launch before opening.

Grand opening events are being sponsored by The Commercial & Savings Bank, Mike Mariola Restaurants, Flex Yoga, and Critchfield, Critchfield & Johnston.

For more information email Jeremy Thomas at director@lyricwooster.org or visit www.lyricwooster.org.


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