VASHON, Wash. — Eileen Wolcott has a plan to keep the doors of the historic Vashon Theatre open.
Wolcott’s family has been running the theatre since 2003, and has been through their share of ups and downs. But as the pandemic caused the film industry to take a hard turn to home viewings and streaming services, the Vashon Theatre struggled to keep up.
“We knew it was coming, but it happened way faster, even differently than I thought it would. It was hard to adjust to the fact that I was playing something here that was playing at home at the same time,” Wolcott recalled. “We started getting turned down for movies that we wanted to play here, and they’re not expanding into as many markets or they want it on the TV more than they want it here, so that one hit me harder than I thought it would.”
Wolcott said the economic aftershocks are still being felt, with business only being a third of what it needs to after being reopened for a year.
She said something needs to be done soon to keep the lights on.
“A brick and mortar building is just so expensive to hang onto… We have to have it open and being viable, it’s got to earn its keep, it has to be used by the public, or it can’t survive,” she said.
Now she’s asking the island for help.
For the next month, people can buy engraved tiles that will be installed in front of the theatre.
The proceeds would go to an outdoor meeting space in the lot next door, which would include a Jumbotron screen and an area for food trucks and other small businesses to sell their products.
Wolcott hopes the tiles will highlight the theatre’s connection to the community, and the role it serves, not just as a place to get entertainment, but fellowship.
“When something big in the community happens, we open our doors, everybody comes in, and we spend time together. So it’s the heart of the town, I think,” she said. “I’m just the caretaker right now. It’s really the community’s theatre. So I’m really excited to have everybody out there on those tiles.”
Wolcott hopes to have the outdoor theatre done by July 1. If you’d like to learn more, head over to vashontheatre.com for more information.