Theater gets a make over now that San Benito Stage Company has a
permanent lease
A change has come over the Granada Theater. Gone are the smells
of stale popcorn and hotdog grease, sticky floors and a dated movie
screen. The change comes thanks to the members of the San Benito
Stage Company. The theater troupe has made the former movie house
into their permanent home.
Theater gets a make over now that San Benito Stage Company has a permanent lease
A change has come over the Granada Theater. Gone are the smells of stale popcorn and hotdog grease, sticky floors and a dated movie screen. The change comes thanks to the members of the San Benito Stage Company. The theater troupe has made the former movie house into their permanent home.
“We’d been using the location since 2002, usually about twice a year,” said Sally Hail, a board member with the San Benito Stage Company. “The venue was available. It hadn’t been used for much of anything other than Stage Company productions. We’d been using [the Granada] for some productions while we used the high school auditorium for our big productions and went outside of the theater locations for our dinner shows.”
Since signing a lease for the property in September, the San Benito Stage Company members have done some revamping.
One of the first things they did was hang a black drape over the movie screen; they added new carpet and lighting to the entryway; took out two rows of seats to accommodate an orchestra and expanded the stage so the actors have more room to walk around. They also painted the stage area black.
“We’ve never been able to do hanging sets before, but because we’re located here now, they allow it,” Hail said.
The Hollister 4-H volunteered their services and painted the walls backstage for a community service project.
“When we first came to the building none of the lights worked and the carpet was deteriorated,” Hail said. “Premiere [Cinemas, the owners of the Granada] allowed us to [make improvements] and rented the space to us at a reduced cost.”
There is still a lot of work to be done. The backstage restrooms have been cleaned up, but the men’s room still doesn’t have any doors. The theater also lacks dressing rooms.
When they open their first show at their more permanent home Oct. 19, the cast will use the YMCA offices across the street as the main dressing room. A drape in the back of the stage will allow for quick changes. If Hail has her way, however, she’d like to eventually clean up the basement of the theater and add several partitions for dressing rooms.
There is an opportunity to purchase more professional lighting fixtures from a company in Las Vegas at a reduced rate, but the company will need help financing the project.
“We’ve had some great sponsorship from places like Hollister Paint,” Hail said. “But we’re always looking for more. Though we’ve gotten many things donated, our volunteers spend the time and do the labor.”
The idea is to build up the venue so the stage company can offer it to other groups who want to put on productions, but still use it for all the company’s productions.
“We can do more with the company now because we have an actual home,” Hail said. “We want to be a down-home theater. We want to help the community with everything theater. It was the best feeling the first night of practice for Sleepy Hollow, being able to practice in the theater we were going to perform in.”
“It’s wonderful,” said Kathy Alvarez, a producer of “Sleepy Hollow.” “Normally we rent it and only get it two weeks before [opening.] All the sets are built elsewhere and the kids have to practice somewhere else.”
Heather Fee, 13, a cast member of ‘Sleepy Hollow,’ said rehearsing in the space they will be performing in from the start made it easier to figure out the choreography and movements.
“It did make a difference,” she said.
There may also be potential for some increased revenue flow in the downtown with the addition of a new playhouse.
Brenda Weatherly, executive director of the Hollister Downtown Association, said the theater will make a great addition to downtown.
“I think it’s great that [the Granada] is being used for performing arts,” Weatherly said. “I think it should add to the downtown vitality.”
Jerry Muenzer, a local business owner and member of the downtown association Economic Restructuring Committee agreed.
“I think there’s no downside,” Muenzer said. “Just the fact that [the building] is being used and remodeled is a good thing.”
