Wildish theater nears first curtain call.

Byline: Jack Moran The Register-Guard

WILDISH THEATER The Richard E. Wildish Community Theater is set to open this fall. Organizers are seeking volunteers to form a "Friends of the Theater"-type management group. Call 746-1651 to volunteer or make a donation. To book the Wildish for an event, call 736-4033.

SPRINGFIELD - After six years of hope, hype, hoopla and delays, showtime at the Richard E. Wildish Community Theater is now just weeks away.

Work crews are putting final touches on the renovated building at 630 Main St., in preparation for the curtain to rise in November at a downtown venue that's being dubbed "the Wildish."

"This is exciting. I get pumped up every time I talk about it," said Tom Draggoo, a local banker who serves as president of the Springfield Renaissance Development Corp. The volunteer-led nonprofit group bought the former McKenzie Theater building in 2000 and has since raised more than $2 million to refurbish the space.

"It's taken a lot of work to get to this point," Draggoo said.

Fundraising has been a monumental challenge for the group, which initially hoped to open the theater by 2003. The nonprofit continues to apply for grants and seek private donations to pay off about $600,000 still owed on the building.

"We don't want there to be any debt when we open, but there is some right now," said Draggoo, adding that theater rental fees and ticket prices will depend on the level of funding needed when the Wildish opens.

Once the 284-seat theater is paid for, it will have to bring in enough cash to cover the building's maintenance, utilities and insurance costs. Draggoo figures that can be accomplished if the facility is booked nine times a month, although a rental fee schedule has not yet been established.

The theater's first live performance is slated to be a high school play on Nov. 2, presented by students of the Academy of Arts and Academics. Classes at the new, 86-student alternative high school begin next week. Until construction of the academy across Main Street from the old movie house is complete, students will depend heavily on the Wildish and other downtown buildings for classroom space, school director Mike Fisher said. The theater will continue to be used throughout the school year as a training ground for aspiring performers and artists.

The theater's official grand opening will be later this fall. A community open house with live performances is set for Nov. 12.

Willamalane Park and Recreation District officials will handle theater booking for the next 18 months. Draggoo said organizers of the Oregon Bach Festival, the Eugene Concert Choir and the Oregon Festival of American Music have inquired about renting the Wildish for performances.

The theater is designed to be suitable for events ranging from plays, recitals and concerts to film festivals, corporate trainings and speaking engagements.

Non-entertainment gatherings already set for the theater include Springfield Mayor Sid Leiken's 2007 State of the City address and a Springfield Chamber of Commerce membership event.

"It's a very flexible space," Draggoo said. "And quality-wise, it will compare with any place in town."

The refurbished theater is touted as a development that will spruce up downtown and draw families to the city center on evenings and weekends.

"It will be a destination downtown, and businesses around it will be affected in a positive way," said Dan Egan, Springfield Chamber of Commerce executive director and a member of the community theater's board of directors.

"People are going to be pleasantly surprised with this theater," Egan said. "It's a unique building that raises the bar for what buildings can and should look like downtown. Although it's taken longer than we hoped to complete it, I think this shows that good things can get done in downtown Springfield."