LOGAN – A $5.2 million capital campaign to renovate the Caine Lyric Theatre is close enough to its goal that the Lyric Repertory Company and the Caine College of the Arts at Utah State University have announced their plans for that upcoming project.
What that means for theater patrons this summer is that all of the repertory company’s 2025 productions will be staged on the USU campus.
“USU began refurbishing the theatre this past in summer with a re-roof of the audience areas using university funding,” according to Nick Morrison, the dean of Caine College of the Arts.
But the theatre’s stage house – constructed in 1913 — is in need of a basement–to-roof rebuild so the college can continue to offer students and the community the unique experience of live theater in the historic venue.
That renovation is now scheduled to begin in early summer of 2025 and hopefully conclude by spring of 2026.
“After 16 season without the use of our (overhead) fly system in the Caine Lyric Theatre,” says Lyric artistic director Richie Call, “we’re increasing the chances that we could have the construction complete in time for our 60th anniversary season in 2026.”
In the meantime, the Lyric’s already-announced productions for 2025 will shift to the Morgan Theatre, the Black Box Theatre and the Russell/Wanless Performance Hall on the USU campus.
“We’ve been using those facilities since 2019 so that our patrons could get to know the spaces in preparation for this exact scenario,” Call adds.
“In addition, we will be working hard between now and the summer of 2025 to improve the sound in the Morgan Theatre…to include offering assisted listening devices for those who have previously found it difficult to hear in that space.”
Those summer offerings will include Bright Star, a bluegrass musical by Steve Martin and Edie Bricknell that will be performed June 13 to July 26 in the Morgan Theatre; Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure by Steven Dietz, which is also slated in the Morgan Theatre from June 20 to July 25; Home, I’m Darling by Laura Wade in the Black Box Theatre from June 27 to July 26; and the beloved Oscar Wilde comedy The Importance of Being Earnest in the Morgan Theatre from July 4 to 24.
The Vosco Call Spotlight event honoring Wendi Hassan, the managing director of the Cache Valley Center for the Arts, is set for July 7 in the Russell/Wanless Performance Hall.
The week-long Page to Stage information program will also be slated in that venue from June 2 to 6.
Morrison credits the generosity of USU and a small number of major donors for putting the “Applaud the Tradition” campaign within reach of its $5.2 million goal.
“Remember, you can still play a part,” according to Call.
“While construction is ready scheduled to begin, we are still in need of help to cross the finish line. To learn more about how to contribute to the Caine Lyric Theatre Renovation Fund, please visit the “Donate” page at www.lyricrep.org
The Caine Lyric Theatre is located at 30 West Center Street in downtown Logan.