When the doors of Innisfail's Royal Theatre opened for the first time on Jan. 31, 1928, it was considered a crowning moment of cultural achievement for the town.
The grand opening of the theatre was a culmination of big dreams, a $40,000 project ñ a huge sum for that era -- that was spearheaded by local entrepreneur Benj Shnitka. The stately structure on Main Street was an immense source of pride for the town, which was then embracing itself proudly as the most forward moving community of Central Alberta.
ìIt is right up to the minute in complete in every detail and will add to the pleasure and comfort of the patrons,î noted the Innisfail Province in an advance commentary before the grand opening. ìThe whole building shows that more than ordinary thought and care has been used in the planning of this beautiful building, and we feel that Mr. Shnitka is to be congratulated on the results of his efforts.î
The mayor and all of the town's most prominent citizens arrived on opening night to watch the recent Hollywood hit movie Mother Knows Best. The following week, community citizens paid 10 cents to come to the 13 by 20 metre dance hall at the back of the theatre, and swing to the tunes played by the six-piece Bone's Orchestra. They would then head upstairs for a good meal in the 100-seat Club CafÈ.
It was a grand beginning for Innisfail's Royal Theatre, heralded by the community and its investors, which included the renowned Dr. George Kemp, as the most up-to-date and complete theatre in Western Canada, a building that featured the day's most modern amenities, including a balcony tier with 15 rows of opera seats overlooking the auditorium, the dance hall with 2,400 square feet of ìhighly polished hardwoodî, an acoustic room for the orchestra, a crying room for mothers and their babies, and 250 elegant lamps regulated by dimmers.
Most impressive even to this day, is the theatre's ceiling that was adorned with metal plates, and then reportedly hand painted Michelangelo-style upside down by a craftsman lying on his back on a scaffold.
The theatre was magnificent in every way. But its early splendour was not to last. Within a year, due in part to the great stock market crash of 1929, the theatre's board of directors was forced to declare bankruptcy. A second ownership group also quickly went bust.
The Royal Theatre would carry on, sometimes barely limping, during the ensuing decades in Innisfail, more often than not unappreciated for its consistent determination to be the town's focal point for arts and entertainment. By the turn of the century the building on Main Street was abandoned, weathered and largely forgotten.
But local realtors Derek and Eva Austin had a dream. They wanted the building reopened and restored. In 1999, the couple purchased the theatre, and now almost 15 years later the once grand old Royal Theatre, now known to locals as the Century Theatre, has new life and new hope to always be an integral part of the community.
ìI feel it is a wonderful thing, a wonderful building. It is good for the community,î said Derek, whose original intent for the building was to be a new home for live entertainment, a venue that would be the pride of Central Alberta. ìI wanted it to be kind of like a Rosebud in Innisfail and I thought it would be very successful because it has awesome acoustics and it is a wonderful venue.
ìI thought it could carry itself. That proved to be very difficult doing that,î said Derek, adding the live and professional theatre performances over the years have produced ìfantasticî shows.
While the couple is still holding onto their initial dream for the Century Theatre to be a top-notch home for live theatre, the world of cinema is now the priority.
Over the next decade and a half the couple invested more than $250,000 into the old building, which included an investment in 2009 that gave Central Alberta its first digital cinema and surround system, complete with one of the largest and most modern movie screens, which can be removed on any given night to allow for live shows and presentations. They have added commercial space for a mortgage company on the west side of the building, once the site of a restaurant where Derek's grandmother once worked. And there is a residential suite upstairs where the old Club CafÈ used to be.
Best of all for the community, the old theatre is a venue that is also used by the community for corporate meetings, birthday parties, and even marriage proposals.
The old Royal Theatre has changed, yes, but it has returned to the community scene with a new vitality, critically important for the town's revitalized Main Street, as well as for the youth of the community.
ìThe theatre gives something for the local kids to do,î said Eva, noting they employ five locals at any given time. ìIt also gives jobs to the local school kids. There is consistency here now. People know we are reliable to be open every day, except for one day a week.î
The Austins have had to make their own grand plan to revive the storied theatre with patience and hard work. The only government assistance they have received was a small provincial grant to fix the roof. Otherwise, the theatre runs today because of their own investment and many days of long hours of blood, sweat and tears they have dedicated to restore many of the building's old nooks and crannies.
However, they do want to hire a manager to promote the theatre in the community, and to have citizens take advantage of the many ways the storied structure can be utilized.
ìI would like to fix it up more. I want to keep it going. I want to save this building,î said Derek. ìThere is lots of work still to do, brickwork and redo the marquee. It is a great old building.î
