Work underway in Alberta town to restore one of last remaining Quonset-style theatres [Video]

The historic Roxy Theatre in southwestern Alberta’s Crowsnest Pass has seen better days.

Its neon sign is in need of repair, the inside is bone-chillingly cold, and the heating, flooring, original 275 seats and insulation have been ripped out.

What does remain is the two-storey entrance and lobby, complete with an art deco ticket booth and a coal chute connected to the bones of the Quonset hut-style theatre made of galvanized corrugated steel panels.

It hasn’t been open for 20 years, but there is hope the theatre in downtown Coleman, Alta., built in 1948 can be restored to its original glory.

In the theatre’s main auditorium, Fred Bradley describes how everything, including the old insulation, had to be taken out last year.

“This is the guts of the building. This is where the performance stage will be,” says Bradley, a former Alberta cabinet minister who sits on the Revive the Roxy Theatre building committee.