Written by Stephen Ondich
Redevelopment organization Gateway Milbridge is nearing the final phases of its Bring Back the Milbridge Theatre project.
Built in 1937, the Milbridge Theatre is a long standing Down East landmark. However, in 2014, owner operator Dave Parsons passed away leaving the theatre’s future uncertain. At that point, Gateway Milbridge, a community redevelopment organization stepped in. Next, the group launched an ambitious 7 stage campaign to rebuild and reopen the venue.
Richard Bondurant, Chair of Gateway Milbridge, spoke with us on the theatre’s history and rebuilding progress.
The Milbridge Theatre
Location
The Milbridge Theatre is 43.3 miles from Acadia National Park.
Richard Bondurant was drawn to Milbridge’s coastal charm almost 20 years ago. His experience in project management and love of the town made him a logical choice to lead Gateway Milbridge.
Usually, I pride myself in my interview preparation. However, Richard schooled me (in a good way) on many issues related to Milbridge Theatre history, its rebuilding and Gateway Milbridge.
Also, I found out we are neighbors!
The Origins of Bring Back the Milbridge Theatre
MaineTerrain: How long you have you been involved with the theatre?
Since September of 2015.
MaineTerrain: Right when the project started!
Well, when it got into full force, yes, It had started, I would use the word gently before that. It picked up steam in a period of August through November of 2016.
MaineTerrain: So the Bring Back the Theatre campaign is several years in. The outdoor stage is functional. What does the inside look like at this point?
Are you familiar with what exactly transpired with the original building and everything? (Editor’s note: Uh-oh)
MaineTerrain: I have been by the theatre several times. However, I’ve never been in myself. As I understand it, the last individual who owned it passed away. It was in disrepair and needed to basically be gutted.
Right. Let me let me give you a little bit more detail. The original Milbridge Theatre was built in 1937. That building is no longer there.
Dave Parson’s Death
So that building was quite large and occupied the entire lot. It was a 200 + seat theater and continually operated with stage shows and film from 1937 until I guess Dave (Parsons) died in the end of 2014. December 2014, I guess it was.
Dave had family, but no one in the immediate area. They were from other states. So, after he died it was shuttered and fell into disrepair. It was already having leaking issues, moisture issues and roof issues for some time, as anybody in Milbridge can attest.
Snow Storm of 2014 Damages Theatre
Back in 2014 or 2015, we had an extraordinary series of snow storms. At one point, I would guess we had upwards of 60-70 inches on the ground. Thus, it was just crazy. That caused significant damage to the roof and things like that.
Over the period from Dave’s death until the theatre was purchased by our group in July of 2016 the building just fell into greater and greater disrepair.
Gateway Milbridge, Early Days
I joined the group in September of 2015. The group purchased the theatre and the lot in July of 2016. Then we started fundraising. At that point it was already obvious the main structure could not be salvaged. It was just too far gone. Too much damage had occurred.
The Taco Stand
The structure that is on the lot currently was not an original part of the building. It was added on in the mid 1970’s. And it was originally called the Taco Stand
The Weingarts, who owned the theatre before Dave, built the Taco Stand in the early to mid 1970’s. It was connected to the theater as part of the building, but it’s not an original part. However, because it was newer, it was salvageable. Accordingly, that is the piece that stands on a lot today.
The Marquee Shoppe
So we have kept that piece and turned it into what we call the Marquee Shoppe. Inside the Marquee Shoppe, we have a mini museum featuring display items that we salvaged from the theater building, photographs, all kinds of things. The back portion of the Marquee Shoppe is storage for us.
We took as many items out of the theater building the original theatre buildings as we could salvage and stored them. Several of those are on display there in the mini museum of the Marquee Shoppe.
We had the original building demolished in July of 2017 after determining that most of the original building was not salvageable, we made the decision to demolish the unusable portion of the facility.
MaineTerrain: I first came to Milbridge after the demolition. So every time I drove by the theatre, I thought “The theatre is nice, but it’s pretty small for everybody to be talking about it all the time.” It makes a lot more sense in that context. Thank you.
The theatre itself occupied that entire property and Dave Parsons actually had an apartment in the back of it. It was quite a large building at the time.
The Taco Stand Remains
MaineTerrain: Interestingly, Vasquez Take Out was not the first Mexican restaurant in Milbridge, apparently. Before Vazquez there was the Taco Stand!
Yes, the Taco Stand was there. This predates me.
My understanding is they had two or three of them at one point up and down Highway 1. Maybe one in Machias and maybe one in Ellsworth, I don’t recall. But I think there were two or three at one point.
And then after the Taco Stand, Dave and others began selling candy and ice cream out of there. So other people refer to it as the ice cream shop.
Just go to our theater website www.milbridgetheater.org. Go where it says theatre history in the blue bar. Next, scroll down and you’ll actually see some original pictures of the old building.
Demolition and Rebuilding at the Milbridge Theatre
MaineTerrain: I was on www.MilbridgeTheater.org and saw those pictures. However, it didn’t register that the building is different than what’s there now.
When we demolished the original building we cleared the lot. Then, we salvaged the Marquee Shoppe. We added a little bit onto the back of the Marquee Shoppe to give us a storage space. We cleaned inside of the marquee shop and created the mini museum.
By then we had the plan. We knew it would take a very long time to raise the money to build a new theatre, especially in an environment like we are in which is quite rural. So we wanted to make the lot as usable as possible.
Deciding to Demolish
The first thing was to evaluate the building. It had deteriorated and dilapidated so much. Also it is right there in the center of the village. We cleaned it (the site) up and made it look better.
We had to plan what to do with the lot while we raised money. And the idea was to build an outdoor stage, which we did with a great deal of volunteer effort, both materials and labor.
A Fresh Start with the Outdoor Stage
Then we thought in the summer we can have performances and actually utilize the lot and bring entertainment to town, weather permitting, of course. This allowed us to use the lot right away rather than waiting three or four years for a new building.
Our philosophy was let’s build an outdoor stage, which was fairly easy for us to do. Then, see if we can get performances and things like that and bring people to town on Friday evenings.
Give people free entertainment and let them enjoy it.
We built the stage almost immediately after clearing a lot. The stage debuted in August of 2017. Then, we had I think four concerts and maybe one or two movie performances that year.
We had music and we had an outdoor theatre. Our movie equipment allows us to do outdoor movies as well.
Grant Money Starts to Flow in 2016
Then in 2017, we received small grant from the Maine Community Foundation that allowed us to expand the season greatly. And so we had, 13 or 14 performances from June through September, including three films, and 10 or 11 concerts. They were very successful.
It really helped us understand that what we were doing was a very viable project and one the community wanted. There were lots of interviews and surveys done when our group first organized to see if people wanted the theatre to be brought back. It was an overwhelming yes.
We had a business plan developed and received another grant in 2015 and 2016. That also confirmed the viability of the project. However, until you actually start doing it you don’t really know.
Keeping the Theatre Alive
MaineTerrain: With multiple ownership changes in the theatre over the years, no one ever attempted to re-purpose the venue. Accordingly, was there a tacit agreement that each new owner would continue to operate the theatre for the benefit of the community?
Well, it was built as a theatre. It’s kind of hard to alter a structure that is intentionally built as a slope floor seating structure with actual stage and things like that. Thus, physically, the building was obviously built as a theatre.
Of course, entertainment has changed tremendously since it was built in 1930s. At that time, not only did it show film but there were quite a few live stage shows at the theatre.
Each Theatre Owner Added Value
All of the owners helped the theatre grow.
Ray and Ann Little were big in the country music scene in Canada. They came and bought the theatre in the late 1950s or early 1960’s.
They were very instrumental in the period from 1957 or so to 1971. They produced a lot of stage shows, movies and things like that, as well.
Have you ever heard of Grandpa Jones (Louis Marshall Jones) from the TV show Hee Haw?
MaineTerrain: I do remember HeeHaw, yes.
The Littles were friends with several people on the show who came to Milbridge to perform on stage downtown.
They came to Milbridge and brought quite a bit of entertainment our way. That was a huge boost.
Changes in the 1970’s
The Weingarts bought the theatre from the Littles in 1971. They kept it till 1978. It was a passion for them. They just enjoyed doing it. Like you said, part of it is the fact that every one of the owners just had a real passion for it – for stage production, movies, film, things like that.
Dave was a movie and film fanatic. I mean, the man was an extraordinary fan. He was almost obsessed with anything to do with film and movies from the 1920’s forward. He had an extraordinary collection of different things that he gathered. It was a true passion for him even when he got older and it was very difficult for him to run things.
There were several people who helped him but he kept it going, just because of his passion for it..
MaineTerrain: That’s great. I have seen Dave’s name come up before in other articles, not having anything to do with the theatre at all. I guess that’s Milbridge for you.
On Friday and Saturday nights it was the hub of activity from Gouldsboro to Machias. It was like that for years. It was a very integral part of life for people in the area.
Gateway Milbridge Projects
MaineTerrain: What other projects is Gateway Milbridge involved in?
The theatre is the largest project that Gateway Milbridge has taken on. However, have you seen the flower planters through town for the summer that line Main Street?
From June through October, there are a series of 25 flower planters set up in town. This was our first project. They’re huge, They’re about 4 feet by 4 feet.
We had them lined along Main Street. They’re painted dark gray. We fill them with flowers in the first week of June. And those flowers, through volunteer efforts go all the way till October. They’re pretty impressive and sort of a milestone that people from around the area come to see.
They get quite large and add a nice touch to downtown. Consequently, it helps dress up downtown. That is the first project we did. We also put an Information Center at the Schooner Art Gallery,
Of course, we took on the theatre project, as well. We do play a very heavy part in the organization and the execution of Milbridge Days, as well as Christmas on Main Street which occurs in December of every year.
MaineTerrain: This is completely out of left field, but have you ever participated in the Codfish Relay Race?
No (laughs).
I have certainly watched it. I have not participated.
MaineTerrain: Fair enough. I do look forward to that event.
Milbridge Days & Nights
We always have a kickoff celebration the Friday before Milbridge Days. The last two years, we’ve had a live game show night which has been just extraordinarily fun and a huge event for the town.
We are taking a break from that this year. It is an extraordinary amount of work to execute but it’s fun as all get out. It goes over very well.
This year, we’re going to do something that we did back in the 1990’s. We’re having an outdoor street dance concert.
We have the Allison Ames Band, which is a very, very good band. Friday night we’ll do a live stage show from seven to nine o’clock. Of course, it’s free of charge for everybody.
MaineTerrain: Did Gateway Milbridge have a hand in the recently opened Wellness Walking Park?
No, that’s the Women’s Health Resource Library, (WHRL).
They’re a separate organization from ours. They’re very good. And they do a great job for Milbridge, too.
Cultural Expansion in Milbridge
MaineTerrain: It’s great that so many positive things are going on in Milbridge. A lot of people in mature downtown areas around the US want something positive to happen. However, putting forth the resources to actually do it another thing entirely.
Yes. We have three really strong organization in town. WHRL, which you just mentioned. Have you heard of Mano en Mano?
MaineTerrain: I have heard the name.
Milbridge has a large concentration of Hispanics. 21 to 25% of our population is Hispanic.
When the seasonal laborers first came to work the blueberry fields, many of them stayed and settled in Milbridge.
They have done quite a bit for the community as well. They’ve added quite a bit in terms of culture and diversity.
Mano en Mano, is not only for the seasonal workers, but it’s to help serve the overall Hispanic community and be a conduit for the state of Maine and for the town of Milbridge.
It helps people to acclimate to the area culturally. It’s a good organization.
MaineTerrain: That’s great.
Yes. Milbridge gets quite a bit of publicity for all three groups. Milbridge is the only town in Washington County that’s growing economically and in population the last several years.
Milbridge is Staying Alive
MaineTerrain: Interesting. I knew that the average age of a Maine resident is trending upward. However, I didn’t realize that Milbridge bucks that trend. That’s good. Sometimes people want things to stay the same but if you really love the area you want manageable growth.
It is common, but it’s a Catch-22. It’s a difficult environment in Washington County. The towns have a difficult struggle. And like you said, the population is aging. Towns are having to find a way to stay alive.
Gateway Milbridge, Mano a Mano, and WHRL have all done quite a bit to enhance Milbridge, both economically and aesthetically. It’s not just a matter of bringing visitors in . It’s making it a place that people are proud to be in. You want the community spirit to be there and people to have pride in something like that.
Milbridge Days is a Collaborative Effort
That is another thing that all three organizations have helped with. Milbridge Days has become a pretty big deal. That’s done a lot to draw people to town and give us a good reputation. Things like the game show, the night of the concert, the new park that we’re always working on and things like that.
There’s just a lot going on, which is good for the town. Milbridge is getting a quite a bit of recognition, by the way, across the state.
MaineTerrain: That is good to see. When you do a Google search for many of Maine’s smaller towns, articles are sparse. However, a search of Milbridge brings up a fair amount of media.
I do encourage you to explore our website more, especially the page called Benefits to Businesses, You’ll find a lot of information.
MaineTerrain: I will.
Breaking Ground on the Indoor Venue in 2019
MaineTerrain: What do you think Dave Parsons would think about what’s going on right now with the theatre?
I think that he would be pleased to see that somebody wants to keep it going. He would be happy to see the reception from the town and the live concerts and things like that, I think he would be eager to see the new building go up.
We’re making good strides toward that. We would like to initiate groundbreaking for the new structure in the autumn of 2019. That is our goal. We’re getting very close to being able to execute that goal, so we are excited about that.
The Importance of An Indoor Facility
Right now, the outdoor stage is popular, and it’s a lot of fun. However, we are weather dependent. We can only operate basically 12 weeks out of the year. Then, of course, if the weather is not good, we have to cancel an event.
So, having an indoor facility again will give us many more options to do year round performances. More importantly, we will have something for the community in the off season.
You know, summer in Milbridge is a beautiful time of year. It’s brief, but it’s beautiful. And you have people from away come and summer people come. It’s an active great town. Somebody said to me once, we try to cram a year’s worth of living into three months. It’s true.
MaineTerrain: Sometimes I feel guilty coming in for Summer and then leaving. It’s awesome that the community will have a resource to be enjoyed year round.
Having a year round facility will be a boon in many ways, not only for the community, and for its residents, but also for downtown. It makes Milbridge a place where things are happening.
Combining Theatre Work and Play Makes Fundraising Easier
MaineTerrain: Opening the outdoor stage, even on a limited basis was a great idea. People in the community see what is happening and the progress being made. It’s much harder to raise money for something that exists in concept only.
That’s exactly right. We needed to demonstrate viability to the community by doing something. The other part of it was to make sure that our business model was executable and it was.
Our outdoor events average attendance of 200 or more. We’ve had as many as 400 at one performance, which is substantial for a town of 1500 people!
People do want that type of environment. It is the heart of downtown. It brings activity and it’s fun on Friday nights. It’s a fun place to be. The concert series has shown us that it is viable. It’s been a good testing ground to have the outdoor stage. It has helped us quite a bit.
The Milbridge Theatre’s Outdoor Stage Draws Big Crowds
MaineTerrain: What is the furthest you’ve heard of anybody coming to attend a theatre hosted event, specifically for the occasion?
We’ve had people come from New Brunswick in Canada. People have come from north of Bangor.
For example, the Allison Ames Band is coming to do a Milbridge stage performance this summer. They came last summer and have a very large draw. They have a large following from north of Bangor so we have people coming from that area.
Last September, we had Gus LaCasse . And the St. Andrews Pipe and Drums came down from Ellsworth. They’re very good. They have won awards throughout New England.
Gus LaCasse is a young prodigy. I guess he’s 16-17 years old now and one of the absolute best Acadian style music fiddle players in the world. He has a very strong following.
Acadia is More than a National Park
Acadia is actually a region that refers not only to the National Park, but it refers to parts of New Brunswick, as well as Nova Scotia, and Maine. That area was settled by French speaking residents from France. When people talk about Acadian music and things like that, we’re talking about linguistic and musical performances that are very old in tradition that came from the 1600’s- early 1700s, from France. Parts of Quebec, parts of New Brunswick and parts of Nova Scotia as well as Maine.
So Gus plays that type of very classic old style French Canadian, which we call Acadian music style,. It’s a rare style. Very good, very fast fiddle playing. He’s excellent at it. So he has a very strong following from New Brunswick down to Maine. He is a huge draw. He’s coming July 3, to perform again this year.
MaineTerrain: Great. I look forward to that.
The New Milbridge Theatre, 2019 and Beyond
MaineTerrain: Since you’re entering into the final phase of your current project is there another vision above and beyond getting the new building opened up?
Right now our goal is to get a building up and have it finished inside, Our goal right now is to have a fairly simple building that we can begin using immediately inside. So ultimately, beyond that, we would like to strengthen the building in terms of the types of seating that we have lighting, acoustics and things like that.
Once we have the building up our goals will be to improve seating, lighting, sound equipment, things like that, and projection equipment as well. Modern, digital, full service projection equipment will help. Those are the things we want to accomplish after we get the building up.
Indoor Theatre Operations
But another transition that will have to take place, of course, is once the buildings up, we have to operate it! It’s one thing to do 10 to 12 weeks of programming in the summer. It’s a completely different thing to do an entire year of programming on an ongoing basis.
Our business plan that we did two years ago takes that into account. Once the building is up we will move into those phases. – operating year round, a programming system for the theatre, and of course, the projects to enhance the sound, the lighting, the seating and the projection equipment.
MaineTerrain: Kudos. It’s a incredible project. Gateway Milbridge is doing great work. It’s exciting for the community.
And we look forward to your donation.
MaineTerrain: Fair enough.
MaineTerrain: I really do appreciate you taking the time to talk about the Milbridge Theatre. I learned quite a bit.
I’m always glad to help Steve and like I said we’re glad to have you in the community. We look forward to meeting you, I only live three doors down so when you come to town, come see us.
MaineTerrain: Absolutely!
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Dan adrigan
2 Sep 2020Big Car show Sat. Sept.5th.10-2 at 44 North. There will be lots of people. Promote the project. Good day to set up, there will be a lot of people from out of town. Info. call: 207-485-7705 or Dan danladrigan@hotmail.com
Stephen
6 Sep 2020Hi Dan – Hope the car show went well! If any of those MDI folk start behaving badly please take notes! 🙂