Proposed theater has audience, study shows

DADE CITY -- Proponents of a new community theater adjacent to the old Crescent Theater senior center heard some encouraging news Monday when an expert said a feasibility study so far shows strong demand and little competition.

A coalition of civic leaders and theater enthusiasts has been working alongside Pasco County's Community Aging and Retirement Services for more than three years on the effort.

Half of the effort is about to become a reality, with crews preparing to break ground on work to turn the shell of the old theater into a senior enrichment center run by CARES. The other half is to erect a new theater connected by walkways to the center.

Kenneth Wieand said his Center for Economic Development Research at the University of South Florida is in the midst of a feasibility study for the theater.

Wieand's effort is expected to predict whether a theater could survive financially if it is built.

So far, he said, the news is good.

"You do have a market here," he said. "Even though it's a small market, it's a market, and it's differentiated by 25 miles from the competition, and that's good news."

Wieand said the study is far from complete, but research to this point shows that 84 percent of residents questioned so far on surveys circulated in the community would go to a live theater performance. The nearest active, professional live theaters are at least 25 miles away, the study shows.

"If they say almost every weekend there's something going on here, then they might say, "I'll stay here rather than driving to Tampa or Sarasota,' " Wieand reasoned.

A survey of people connected with theater arts indicates organizers might also need to hire at least three people to run the theater when it's complete: a director/booking agent, a box office manager and a technician/custodian.

Wieand said use wouldn't have to be limited to live theater performances.

Other theaters are used for lectures, corporate training sites and motivational speakers.

Bill Aycrigg, CARES executive director, said there's still work to be done, but said he was optimistic the project would continue.

The first part of the effort, the renovation of the shell of the Crescent, is a $625,000 job, aided by $400,000 in state grant money. A chain-link fence surrounds the work site, and work is expected to begin this winter.

More participation is still being sought for the survey of what residents would like to see in a theater.

Surveys are available at the Downtown Dade City Main Street office at Pasco Avenue and Sixth Street.

Wieand said the completed feasibility study will give proponents an idea of whether there would be enough interest to support a full-time theater.

"The question is, how big is the demand?" Wieand said. "We haven't crunched the numbers."

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