This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2008, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
It took a miracle for The Historic Empress Theater in Magna to reopen, luckily it got several. It was built in 1916 as a Burlesque for miners. It later became a theater for silent movies for several decades, closing a short time during the depression. It closed shop for good in 1955.
It was one of the few places for entertainment so far west. "When it closed down a lot of us felt lost," said Marilyn Simpson, a Magna resident since 1949.
It got worse a few years later when a fire damaged the theater and the city condemned the building.
Leo Ware bought the building in 1983 in a real estate swap. He was a man of two passions, real estate and theater. He saw the infinite potential of the old theater and decided to work to save it. Immediately, he had to resolve structural concerns to stop Salt Lake County commissioners from razing the building. He invested $30,000 in renovation and worked on it on his own for 17 years. He jackhammered out the old theatre's sloping floor. He then spent three years digging out a basement with a shovel by hand and hauling out the dirt with a wheelbarrow.
More misfortune delayed the opening of the theater. Ware was in a car accident and later diagnosed with Alzheimer's. By 2000, his health forced him to stop working on the theater. Once again the building was still.
In 2004, several community members decided they could pick up where Ware left off.
It took about 40 investors to form a nonprofit corporation to save the building. They formed The Oquirrh Hills Performing Arts Alliance in January 2006 with an 11-member Board of Directors.
They were able to purchase the theater from the Ware family. But their eyes were bigger than their stomachs as they started planning a show before the building was ready to open.
They got literally 10,000 hours of volunteer labor working night and day to get it ready for the scheduled opening day. Because the building's remodeling happened at a feverish pace, the actors rehearsed in the basement of a nearby Zion's Bank.
Another setback arose when county inspectors denied the occupancy permit the day before the show.
Inspired by the efforts of OHPAA's efforts, he offered a checklist and said he would come back the next day on his day off. Two hours before the show, the Empress Theater passed inspection and received its occupancy permit.
On Nov. 6, 2006, the Historic Empress Theater opened its doors again after 50 years with the show "Forever Plaid."
Leo Ware and his family were the guests of honor that night. By that time, he was well into the effects of Alzheimer's, and the family feared he wouldn't realize he was at the theater.
After the show, he applauded the actors and shook their hands. "There was not a dry eye in the house," said Joline Walgamott, executive director for the Empress Theater.
Since opening day, the theater has sold out most of its shows. The theater now has an improv group called "Work in Progress" and has performed various community theatre favorites including "Joseph and the Technicolor Dream Coat and "You're a Good Man Charlie Brown."
The actors love to perform at the restored theater. "It's a small theater where you really can connect with the audience," said actor Brady Flannigan.
The community couldn't be happier to have a historic piece of Magna restored.
"People around here had been waiting so long for something to happen on Main Street," said Rod Walgamott, OHPAA board chairman. "It was really amazing."