Colonial Fox Theatre group seeking community input w/ Colonial Fox Theater Foundation survey

By Greg Grisolano

ggrisolano@joplinglobe.com

PITTSBURG, Kan. — Art-house cinema, concert destination or some other purpose may be in store for Pittsburg’s historic Colonial Fox Theatre, depending on the results of a feasibility study, theater backers said Wednesday.

“If the theater doesn’t serve the needs of the community, it’s just a restored building,” said Vonnie Corsini, president of the Colonial Fox Theatre Foundation. “We have to know what we’re going to use the theater for if the money we’ve received from the community is going to be used in the best way.”

Corsini said the group has conducted 50 interviews and surveyed students at Pittsburg State University, but it is seeking more input to help determine the best use for the 88-year-old building in downtown Pittsburg. That input also will guide architects as they make plans to restore the theater.

“If they just want it open to show movies, that’s an entirely different thing seating and acoustics-wise than if we were going to do concerts, or if we’re going to do stage productions,” she said.

The group wants surveys completed within the next week.

A consultant has been hired to run the survey.

Andrea Springer, of Springer Coaching and Consulting in Hutchinson, said: “It was a very diverse response about what people want to see. We’re not trying to re-create anything that’s already in existence. We’re looking for things that aren’t being served.”

On the Net

A copy of the Colonial Fox Theatre Foundation’s feasibility survey may be downloaded from The Joplin Globe’s Web site, www.joplinglobe.com, or accessed online at the theater’s Web site, www.colonialfoxtheatre.org.

Downloaded surveys may be e-mailed to colonialfoxtheatre@colonialfoxtheatre.org or mailed to P.O. Box 33, Pittsburg, KS 66762.