Woman Of Impact: An Agent Of Change

Preserving historic theaters helps spur economic development.

by Mary Welch

September 26, 2008

A dina Alford-Erwin has worked in various types of entertainment venues, including arenas, convention centers and theaters. But it was only when she came to the Fox Theatre three years ago as its assistant general manager that she understood the allure of historic theaters.

Now she is leading the effort to save and restore other historic theaters throughout the state through The Fox Theater Institute, a new organization launched by The Fabulous Fox Theatre.
    
"I'm a convert," she says with a laugh. "I worked in a lot of places, but only when I came here did I get why historic theaters are so important. It's important not just as an entertainment venue but in many cases restoring a historic theater helps to revitalize the entire town. They are economic boosters."
    
Through the first comprehensive inventory ever undertaken, the institute identified 374 historic theaters in the state, 114 of which have been demolished since 1960. About 118 of the total are still in use as theaters. Armed with a budget of $500,000, the institute is working closely with 15 of those remaining 260 historic theaters. Among the towns with historic theaters are Brunswick, Canton, Rome, Dahlonega, Fitzgerald, Marietta, Thomaston and Statesboro.
     
"We divided the theaters into three categories: fledging, emerging and mature. The fledging theaters may not even be open or are boarded up, while the emerging ones need work but are still fixable, while the mature are usually operational but need some work in isolated areas. Another important part is community awareness. Many of these theaters, especially the fledging ones, don't have the backing of the community to get fixed up. They may not have community boards to help save them. But that's one of the things that we intend to do - create that community interest. Then we can take it to the next operational level with new boards, a strategic plan and an operational plan."
    
The DeSoto Theater in Rome is a mature theater that Alford-Erwin admits may be her favorite. The DeSoto was the first theater in the Southeast to display sound movies. Built in 1927 for $110,000, the 1,500-seat theater was the seventh largest movie venue in the state at the time. It remained one of the main sources of entertainment in the area for 30 years. In 1982 it closed as a theater but opened soon afterwards for an amateur theater group. The Rome Little Theater now owns the movie house and it still retains its art deco marquee, French entrance hall and Georgian interior design.
    
The theater needs some work, especially in the lobby, she says. "The DeSoto is a perfect example of a great theater that needs help - financially and with operations. That's why we started this pilot program to help provide the internal resources of the Fox to help these mature theaters. The Fox Theatre lends itself well to this, not only because we bring the reputation, but we bring the success story as well. We want to share the knowledge that successful restorations of historic theaters have the potential to inspire communities and positively affect their cultural landscape."

    
In fact, three women are leading the renovation effort. Besides Elford-Erwin, there are Molly Fortune, the Fox Theatre's restoration department director, and Caroline Bridges Driebe, the project coordinator for the Fox Theatre Institute. Driebe is working on identifying the target market for the program, creating a marketing plan, identifying partner organizations and running the program itself. The Fox, under Fortune, is the only historic theater in the state with its own full-time restoration director, Elford-Erwin says.
    
"We are all working to reach out to communities and encourage them to embrace their historic buildings and commit to preserving them," she says. "We know what a jewel such a historic place can be. We're working with the Main Street project, which is a part of the The National Trust for Historic Preservation. The Main Street project is a community-driven project that revitalizes older traditional districts, often through renovating historic buildings such as theaters, which serve as a good anchor so that other entertainment-related businesses, like restaurants, can flourish."
    
The Fox Group also is associated with the Georgia Tourism Foundation. "Their mission aligns perfectly with our efforts to facilitate public-private partnerships that benefit the tourism industry," says Gilda Watters, director of The Georgia Tourism Foundation. "Local theater leaders will learn preservation and theater management from one of our state's, and our nation's, finest historic theaters."
    
Alford-Erwin's group is also forming a Georgia Booking Consortium that will leverage the ability to book in multiple theaters, thus increasing the capability to attract better and bigger acts at better rates. "We're one of the few areas or states that doesn't have something like that. Again, what we're trying to achieve is more than just bricks and mortar."
    
 A native of Charlotte, N.C., Alford-Erwin has degrees from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the University of Massachusetts. She came to the Fox after serving as the director of the Times-Union Center for the Performing Arts in Jacksonville, Fla. She also has worked as the director of guest services at the American Airlines Center in Dallas.
   
 "I came to the Fox, where my role is to handle all the operations," she says. "Once something is booked, then it's up to me. But when I came here, I realized what a historic theater means. When you come to the Fox Theatre, you're just not coming to see a show; you're experiencing an event. The ambience. All the joys of a 1929 venue play into the event. It's a magical moment where you step back in time. People are always saying they had their wedding reception there or they got engaged there. We know what a jewel the Fox is, and we want to bring our expertise to help other theaters across the state.
   
 "We're going to be agents of change."