MANSFIELD — The 90th season of the Renaissance Theatre is a hard-earned anniversary.
Officially announcing their 2017-2018 season earlier this month, the historic theatre took the time to honor how far it has come before looking ahead.
“In 1928, when we were built, we were the seventh theatre in Mansfield,” said Rand Smith, president of the Renaissance Board of Directors. “Today we’re the only one (still) standing.”
The Renaissance will host a week-long celebration of its 90th anniversary from Jan. 15 through 21. The facility opened as the Ohio Theatre during a blizzard on Jan. 18, 1928. The theatre hopes to capture that same magic with a screening of the first film shown in the theatre nine decades ago.
According to Smith, in 2012 the Renaissance was $1.2 million in debt and in danger of closing its doors. Today, that debt has been reduced to $150,000 and the theatre has put $800,000 worth of renovations back into the building without acquiring any additional debt.
“We go into our 90th birthday very strong, very positioned not only to celebrate our birth but to celebrate the future,” Smith said. “With your help, we’re creating a better future for Mansfield, Ohio.”
The Renaissance is even expanding its footprint with the addition of a 15,000 square foot building at 166 Park Avenue West. The building will be part of an envisioned “Imagination District” in partnership with Little Buckeye Children’s Museum.
First announced in December 2016, the Renaissance purchased the building for $89 through the Richland County Land Re-utilization Corporation.
“The Renaissance is busting at the seams when it comes to rehearsal space and a secondary performance space, and this project came available through the land bank,” said CEO Michael Miller. “The goal of the building is to transfer a lot of our education classrooms there, a rehearsal space, there will be a smaller black box theatre for some of the stage-on-stage events, and a state-of-the-art recording studio for local artists.”
The Renaissance has been able to renovate the new building with $150,000 worth of donations, though an opening date is still undetermined.
“When you see sponsors and hear about donors and you think their impact sometimes is hidden, this is living proof that it impacts this community,” Smith said.
