Ashland Firehouse Theater Opening

GARY COOPER, SIDNEY POITIER, KATHERINE HEPBURN AND SNOW WHITE EN ROUTE TO ASHLAND

A virtual train from the great past of Hollywood classic movies is headed down the track to “The Ashland Firehouse Theater”.

 

On Monday, November 2, the Ashland Community Theater Foundation and the Town of Ashland reached a preliminary agreement on a one year lease of the front bay of the fire station previously used by the Ashland Volunteer Fire Department. The Foundation will retrofit and equip the bay into Ashland’s community movie theater to be known as the “Ashland Firehouse Theater”.

 

 “It’s an excellent use for this space as the Theater will generate revenue for the Town. Equally important, we expect the “Firehouse” to be of economic benefit to Downtown Ashland.” said Town Manager, Charles Hartgrove.

 

“We plan to start slowly,” said Ragan Phillips, the Foundation president, “and we certainly aren’t going to compete with the first-run, big-time theater operations in the malls.  Our success will depend on establishing a reputation for showing classic films that are intelligent, enlightening and entertaining. We want to be a very positive community- building operation. We are going to do our very best to make certain the “Firehouse”, as a theater, meets those goals of good movies and community-building events.”

 

ACT will retrofit the front bay of the fire station, located at the corner of Duncan Street and Hanover Avenue, with a fixed screen and sound attenuation materials and carpeting.  New projection and sound equipment are being procured and installed.  Comfortable seats have been purchased.  ACT will bear the costs for this renovation.

 

The premier events at The Firehouse are scheduled for Saturday, December 12 and Sunday, December 13. Several Christmas-theme movies will be shown during December.  The current business plan then calls for two seven-movie subscription series to begin in January 2010. Letters offering subscriptions to these two 2010 classic movie series will be mailed shortly.   In time, ACT intends to  show movies on a regular Saturday night schedule with plans also being developed for a Saturday afternoon children’s matinee series and an early evening “Sunday Seniors” series.

 

Ashland, during the current economic crisis, has seen the closing of several Downtown Ashland businesses. The Ashland Theater remains unopened.  “We believe,” remarked Phillips, “that the Firehouse Theater will draw folks to downtown and will be another step in the economic resurgence in Ashland. We have, in the past, had strong support for our ideas from the community. We now, at last, have the venue to turn those ideas into reality.”

 

Further information about the Ashland Firehouse Theater and the Ashland Community Theater Foundation can be obtained by contacting Ragan Phillips at rtphil104@aol.com or 804 798-9721 or any of the listed Foundation Board members.  AshlandFirehouseTheater.org.

 

ASHLAND COMMUNITY THEATER FOUNDATION

504 DUNCAN STREET

ASHLAND, VIRGINIA

NOVEMBER 9, 2009

 

ACT BOARD

ALAN ABBOTT 

JENNIFER CHAMBERS

DALE MANN

RAGAN PHILLIPS

MAX RIEDERER

PHYLLIS THEROUX

KATE WILSON