The Falkon Theatre will become a community-run theatre.
“A group of people got together and created a non-profit community corporation and they’re looking for a manager to operate the theatre,” said Carson Penner, who’s involved in the group. “The goal of the people who are spearheading this is to continue to maintain a theatre in Tisdale.”
Scott Janke is also involved in the effort.
“It’s a staple of most towns or cities that there’s a movie theatre,” he said. “Oftentimes small towns get railed upon because there’s not a lot of things to do for, let’s say, teenagers, so it’s one more amenity, it’s one more option for them.”
There’s still a lot to do before the theatre becomes operational again. One of those items will be to create a board of directors.
“They are going to reach out to the community and get some youth involved and try to involve different circles within the community, being youth, seniors and the arts and recreation side of things,” Penner said.
Penner said he sees the organization running like the Tisdale Riverside Golf Course or the Golden Age Centre.
Janke is spearheading the effort to hire a manager. The part-time position will be responsible for all theatre operations and requires somebody that’s technologically-inclined with strong leadership, communication, business development and marketing abilities.
“I think there’s a bit of creative licence for whoever’s in that position to really try some new things and really put their stamp on the operations,” he said.
There will also be a need for fundraisers and volunteers to keep the theatre’s doors open.
“We’re hopeful that as a community-driven thing, as a non-profit organization, that there’s a good level of community buy-in for it and the whole intention of this group is to maintain this theatre for the benefit of the community,” Janke said.
