The Mansfield Theater is giving its audience a new reason to sit up and take notice by finally replacing its aging theater seats, some of which are believed to date back nearly a century.
Brianna Juneau reports - watch:
As part of ongoing efforts to preserve and modernize the Great Falls Civic Center, the Mansfield Theater has begun removing its theater chairs to make way for newer and more comfortable seats.
Many on the balcony might date back to the 1930’s when the Civic Center was first built, though all of them were reupholstered in 1990’s.
“The seats that were in here have done their job for a long time, but they're wearing thin, mechanical parts are hard to find,” explained Sylvia Tarman, the city of Great Falls Project Manager. “It was time that they needed to be replaced.”
The project will cost around $1 million dollars and is funded through a state grant that was secured to help with essential maintenance and improvement projects at the Civic Center.
The chair replacement is one of several recent initiatives aimed at keeping the historic venue up to date.
Tarman added, “It was an opportune time to seize that grant funding and do these upgrades as best we can, especially for the theater, because it does generate revenue and it's just an iconic piece of this town.”
The new seats are expected to be installed by October of this year before the next symphony season. The goal to ensure that future audiences can enjoy performances in greater comfort and style.
