May 22 2008
Strand Weekly Email: May 22, 2008
Hello all,
Work on the exterior windows has started in earnest. Steve F. had taken apart the windows and started stripping the old finish. As expected, the windows are cherry wood. They will be beautiful when completed. Fortunately this work can take place from the inside. The exterior plywood will be removed only when the windows are finished. As the work on the windows progress, so does the work in the offices. They will look equally as good as the rest of the project.
Bob S. did some maintenance on our plumbing. Our utility sink likes to leak. Bob, armed with a new facet, took care of that problem. We are also thankful to Mother Nature for allowing our theatre to be the perfect temperature….without the heat or A/C running! This will give us a short financial reprieve. Our fixed expenses are around $4500 per month, and at this time in our young life, we can use all the help we can get!
This past weekend a group of us went to Indianapolis to remove the theatre pipe organ that was originally installed in the Oriental Theatre on South Meridian Street. This is something that has been planned for a long time (Kurt knows what I mean, since we both first saw this organ in the early 1970’s), and I am happy it is finally done. There are several items in the organ that are vital to our organ project. You can see a few pictures on the web site of our motley crew at work. Thank you Gordon H., Bob S., Maurice F., Norman J., Terry O., Jim A., Kurt vS. and Elizabeth F. for helping with this project.
On Wednesday night, the Rush County Big Band came again to practice. This is as much for us as it is from them. We are learning the limits of volume in our theatre. They had several vocalists, and we were able to work on some of our sound system setups too. I look forward to the time when they perform for the public at the Strand!
Memorial Day weekend brings a time that pulls most of us away from the theatre. If you have a chance, please go to the celebration on the Courthouse lawn at 10:00am on memorial day. The Shelby Community Band will play, and the American Legion will host the ceremony.
Next week we get ready for the much anticipated "Exit 113" concert on Saturday night. This is your chance to hear this fine local band in a smoke free venue. They have helped us with acoustic testing in the past, and I know you will be pleased with their performance. Thanks to Joey G. for getting this put together. Speaking of Joey, he is still collecting Strand memories on video. This oral history is very important to all of us connected with the Strand.
If you look at the web site ( www.strand-theatre-shelbyville.org) you can go to the bottom of the page and click "next". Keep doing this until you are at the beginning. We are starting to post items from the newspapers at the time. So far we have posts from 1916 and 1925. An unknown researcher dropped the articles off at my office. If you are out there, I would love to know who you are….thank you for the material!
Have a very pleasant Memorial (and Decoration) Day. I look forward to see you soon at the Strand.
David
