Endowment Drive Aims To Ensure Future Of Orpheum Theater

It's a tall order, raising $4.5 million to ensure the Chatham Orpheum theater is around for future generations. But with more than $3.5 million raised to date for its Forever Fund and the generous support of the Lower Cape community, the theater is well on its way to achieving that goal in the next 60 days.

 Having a theater downtown is not something to take for granted, Bill Storff, president of the board of the theater, said recently. The Chatham Orpheum Theater has been counted out more than once. Each time, he said, it was the support of local residents that brought it back and made it the lively and thriving place it is today. 

 First opened in 1916 as a 400-seat theater, by 1987, with multiplexes abounding and attendance dropping, the Orpheum was shuttered. A CVS pharmacy moved into the spot until 2011, when it relocated down the street. 

 The Orpheum was gone but not forgotten. With the space now vacant, local residents jumped on the opportunity, setting up a nonprofit organization. They were determined to raise enough money to buy the building and bring movies back to Main Street. With the support of hundreds of Lower Cape residents, the building was bought in 2012 and the 100-year-old wooden structure restored as a modern, first-class cinema that opened as the Chatham Orpheum Theater in July 2013. 

 But more challenges were ahead which would lead to an expansion of the theater's mission. In 2020, the pandemic forced the Orpheum to close for 13 months. How would it come back again? It was local residents and community members who once again came to the rescue, and according to Storff, "it was the Lower Cape community's generous giving at that time that inspired the community-based mission the theater has today."

 At the urging of Executive Director Kevin McLain, the theater "expanded our mission statement to do more, providing our first class facility to many nonprofit organizations for spreading the message of their respective needs." 

 Nonprofits could now use the theater for free or at a flat fee discount for an event as well as having their materials available and raising money during the screening, McLain said. Working together with the Orpheum, groups like Cape Abilities, the Alzheimer's Family Support Center, Emerald Hollow Therapeutic Riding Center and many other local nonprofit groups and clubs have raised nearly half a million dollars to support their programming to date.

 The connection of the Orpheum with the local nonprofit community is now significant and strong, McLain said. 

"The theater is now a community theater first, and a movie theater second," he added. As one endowment fund donor told McLain recently, "I had no idea of all the outreach and community support the Orpheum offers the Lower Cape community and its nonprofits. I am proud to support that." 

 Theatergoers might be surprised to learn that "the cost of operating the Orpheum exceeds movie revenues, by a significant amount," according to McLain. Half of the cost of the ticket goes directly to the movie studio, and the remaining half cannot alone cover the costs of running a theater. Annual contributions to the Orpheum's operating fund help ensure the theater covers its expenses. The endowment fund will help support capital improvements and secure lasting financial stability. 

"The Orpheum can only exist by the generous support of the community," McLain said.

 In addition to its robust support of local nonprofits, the Orpheum screens first-run showings daily all year, offers free movies for kids of all ages all summer long, supports local artists through their gallery spaces, and provides educational programs that keep the arts accessible to everyone.

 The popular Pizza Shark restaurant is located in the theater. For many families, eating a pizza, naming the actors in the theater's "The After Party" mural, getting popcorn and watching a movie together are essential parts of their cherished family traditions, McLain said.

 The board knows there will be more challenges ahead, Storff said. And with "the vagaries of the movie industry, the unseen risk of future pandemics and the need to keep up with changing technology, this campaign was begun to be sure the theater was secure for generations to come." 

 In the home stretch, every additional contribution to the endowment fund will be matched, 50 cents for every dollar, thanks to generous donors. 

"Every contribution, big or small, makes a difference," McLain said, adding, "we expect to have an honor roll of donors at the completion of the drive."

 Contributions may be made payable to Chatham Orpheum Theater and mailed to PO Box 17, Chatham, MA 02633. For more information go to www.chathamorpheum.com or contact Kevin McLain at kevin@chathamorpheum.org.