In The Suburbs -- Facelift Gives Tacoma's Temple Theatre New Life - - Reopening Is Part Of Southerly Embrace Of Culture

TACOMA - Seattle loses its Music Hall and Tacoma regains its Temple.

It's probably not enough to proclaim a major shift of the Northwest's cultural axis, but it could signal a southerly trend.

The $250,000 renovation and reopening of the 1,600-seat Temple Theatre comes after the recent $2.2 million renovation of Tacoma's Rialto Theatre and the launching of the $7.8 million Tacoma Actor's Guild Theatre project.

"I find it very interesting that, at a time when Seattle has lost its downtown Music Hall (recently demolished), Tacoma is making steps to renovate its theaters and even create a new one," said Kevin Phelps, co-owner of the Temple Theatre.

A year ago, Phelps and Richard Mirau paid nearly $1 million for the theater and the rest of Saint Helens Plaza. The 10-story Egyptian-style building, which is on St. Helens Avenue about two miles east of the University of Puget Sound, was built in 1926 as a Masonic temple and includes more than 4,000 square feet of meeting space, including a ballroom and retail shops.

The theater, which reopened in December after renovations that included new carpets, painting, new lighting and electrical equipment and a downsizing of the seating capacity from 2,400, joined the competition for live entertainment Saturday when comedian George Carlin played two shows.

Almost 2,700 tickets were sold - 87 percent of capacity.

"We're really pleased," Phelps said. "Everything went without a

glitch."

With live-music tours coming off one of their worst years and theaters across the country struggling financially, it's with some uncertainty that Phelps and Mirau have entered the business.

Among those uncertainties are exactly what type of entertainment niche the theater will try to cultivate. As far as music goes, country, jazz and blues shows are possible.

Since reopening, the theater has staged a play ("Chicken Fried Diner"), a sold-out lecture (poet Maya Angelou last week) and has been used for shows by local dance companies and for commencement ceremonies by local colleges.

The Temple will draw from 1.2 million people within its 20-mile radius, meaning it probably won't be considered to be in competition with such Seattle venues as the Paramount, 5th Avenue and Moore theaters, said Phelps.

"The Paramount will get the headliners, the Temple will get the opening acts," said Mike McManus, Paramount Theatre manager. "We won't be in competition with them simply because we're a few steps up in size (3,000 seating capacity)."

The theater's stage is more than 50 feet wide, bigger than any Seattle stage and large enough for Broadway-style productions.

"We would love to put on those types of productions," said Phelps.

While the live-entertainment business is uncertain, Phelps and Mirau are confident about the meeting-space aspect of their venture.

When they took over last year, they averaged about five rentals a month for company meetings and weddings. After renovations of more than $2 million, they've been averaging more than 60 per month.

The theater has a rich history, having been used for shows featuring such stars as George Burns and Lucille Ball. When it opened in 1926, the Tacoma News Tribune called it, "One of the most commodious and beautiful buildings on the West Coast."