Original article posted January 15, 2021 by KOAA5 News. Read the full article here: https://www.koaa.com/open/fox-west-theatre-finds-new-life-on-the-stage
TRINIDAD — A non-profit dedicated to the restoration of the Fox West Theatre in Trinidad, built in 1908, has placed performances back on the stage for the first time in nearly 100 years. Additionally, the team is working to display and breathe new life into the preserved history of the classic construct.
During the early portion of 2020, the Fox West Theatre Alliance, the 501(c)(3) dedicated to restoring the theatre, was contacted by the Colorado Symphony in regards to performing on stage.
Due to the pandemic, this performance was made impossible; however, following that conversation the Alliance set up and filmed several on-stage performances by musical groups from all over.
The theatre had been transitioned into a movie theatre at the end of the 1920s, and closed down in 2012. Making these on stage performances, the first to appear at the Fox West in almost a century.
In addition to these performances, the Alliance recorded a number of behind the scenes tours of the old building.
Both tours and performances were edited and posted online as a part of a virtual campaign, the Fall Fanfare.
This work allowed thousands to get a look at the work being done in and around the theater and once again get a taste for performances on stage at the Fox West.
The Fall Fanfare is far from being the only efforts made to re-integrate the Fox West back into Trinidad culture, the Alliance also having procured funding to stabilize the exterior of the building as well as develop a master-plan for the restoration of the theatre.
The hope is to procure enough funding to start in on the master-plan, once developed, during 2022.
The Fox West Theatre Alliance has also procured off-site storage to create a museum which will display decades of history related to the Fox West. The current expectation is to open the museum starting this spring.
Additionally, the Alliance is working to digitize for online viewing almost a century worth of archived artifacts from this massive piece of history.
Coming this memorial day, the non-profit plans to host a telethon paired with another on-stage performance which will be available for viewing virtually with the possibility of a small in-person audience as well.
Continue to read full article and view TV broadcast video here: https://www.koaa.com/open/fox-west-theatre-finds-new-life-on-the-stage
