Marshalltown Community College is partnering with the Orpheum Board to renovate the historic Orpheum Theater on East Main Street in downtown Marshalltown.  A portion of the project will satisfy the Orpheum Board’s desire to restore a movie theater/concessions area and to create a historic exhibit/display area. MCC will renovate the remainder for theater and classroom use, highlighted by a flexible black box theater with seating for up to 200 to be used for the college’s growing fine arts program. The renovation will also include a green room and broadcasting booth, three classrooms, an area for set design/construction, a serving kitchen, handicap accessible bathrooms, and an office for the director of the new building.

     IVCCD anticipates spending $1.5 million on the renovation of the Orpheum Theater.  The college and Orpheum Board have formed a joint board of advisors whose primary function will be to secure additional outside grant funding for the project.

     This unique partnership will allow MCC to add classroom and performing arts space while supporting a strong community effort to expand and restore the historic downtown Main Street district. The flexibility of the black box theater will permit the college (and other groups) to conduct theater-in-the-round productions, dinner theaters, and a variety of other fine arts events. 

     According to MCC Provost Dr. Barbara Burrows, the renovated Orpheum Theater will also provide training space for the college’s Broadcast Technology students to learn about lighting and sound technologies and set-ups, as well as providing much-needed space for the college and community theater groups to design and construct sets for theatrical productions. It will be a multi-use facility that will draw students and professionals to the downtown area, thus boosting the local economy.

     With the exception of accepting the Orpheum Board’s gift of the building and entering into a 28E Agreement with them to establish this partnership, the IVCCD Board has not taken any action relating to the Orpheum Theater construction project. It is hoped that grant funding can be secured before the end of 2007 and that the project can begin construction work in the spring of 2008.