Theater gets a fresh look
Though delayed by the pandemic, Conroe’s Crighton Theatre is receiving a $1.3M face-lift to expand lobby and restrooms
Not a day goes by that Crighton Theatre Foundation Executive Director Jim Bingham doesn’t look out from the theater to find someone snapping a picture of the jewel of downtown Conroe.
“People come by and tap on the glass and they’ll say, ‘ My friends are visiting from Ohio, can we show them our theater?’ That’s how they say it, ‘our theater.’ They take pride in having this here. They need this to be here because it’s what keeps life going,” said Bingham, the 30-year manager of the theater.
Now the 1934-built theater is getting a $1.3 million face-lift to its lobby and the adjoining property formerly known as the Muse building to entertain theatergoers for years to come.
This renovation, the largest since the theater was brought back to life in 1979, will expand the lobby by 10,000 feet, offer a new concession area, a new entrance into the expanded lobby and 12 downstairs restrooms in the former Muse building. There had previously only been one restroom downstairs.
The Crighton Theatre opened on Nov. 26, 1935, in downtown Conroe as Mayor Harry M. Crighton’s gift to the community. It was designed by Houston architect Blum E. Hester and built at a cost of $80,000. It served as a movie theater through the late 1960s. After that, it closed and fell into disrepair.
In the late 1970s, the theater’s renovation became a community project. The theater opened to new life in January 1979 and has been considered “the Jewel of Downtown Conroe” ever since.
But the pandemic did the theater no favors.
The final show before the pandemic began was Stage Right’s “Thoroughly Modern Millie” in February. Spring shows were canceled or postponed to 2021. But Christian Youth Theater did have three shows with limited capacity over the summer.
Ron Liston, president of the Crighton Theatre Foundation, said everything shut down when the pandemic began. Workers went on to other jobs and were booked when the theater construction was ready to resume.
The project finally got back on track, and Bingham is hoping to have the restrooms and lobby done by Dec. 1, just prior to the opening of Stage Right’s “Peter Pan.”
Guests will find raised pavement leading into the theater. Previously there was a step up to the sidewalk. Bingham said he’s been wanting to do this project for a while, and it was finally taken care of when the city repaved the street recently.
Upon entering the lobby, visitors will find the lobby space doubled and the concession area pushed back to the outer wall of the former Muse building. Twelve additional bathrooms are at the back of the downstairs lobby. For years, there had only been one bathroom downstairs.
The new lobby also features an additional exit from the grand staircase into the new lobby area. A large screen is also in the new lobby area to either show what’s happening on stage or offer previews of upcoming shows.
In September, the board approached the city to submit a request for a $326,000 loan. But the board has since opted not to seek a loan and will seek grants instead to account for the needed funds. The pandemic has also hampered the board’s ability to raise funds.
Once the lobby and restroom renovation is complete, the seats will need to be replaced.
“They continue to function, but they are from1979,” Bingham said. But that will be downthe line when fundraisers can take place again.
Like many other businesses, the board, Bingham and the theater’s patron manager have put much time and effort into safety standards.
Currently they’re preparing for Christian Youth Theater’s “Tuck Everlasting: The Musical” Nov. 6-8 and and “Willy Wonka Jr.” Nov. 19-21. Also up in December is Stage Right’s “Peter Pan” Dec. 420. The show was cast in the spring and has been held over to be a Christmas show for the group.
As of now, groups of no more than 10 are allowed. But according to Bingham, those groups of10 or less must come from the same household and travel to the theater in the same vehicle. They are then seated in the theater with at least two seats between groups and a row in between.
Visit crightontheatre.org for more on the Crighton Theatre. Visit stage-right.org for ticket information for “Peter Pan” and see cythouston.org for upcoming Christian Youth Theater shows.