LIMA, OH (WLIO) - A Lima landmark undergoing a re-birth, celebrating nearly a century of entertainment on Thursday.
The public, members of the local arts community, and more were on hand to sing happy birthday to Lima's Ohio Theatre.
Opening night was on Thursday, November 17th of 1927, with a silent film entitled Tea for Three. Festivities included the "Almost Famous" Open Mic Night, and Lima's poet laureate. A brief history of the Ohio Theatre was presented, along with comments from Bart Mills with the Council for the Arts and Lima mayor Sharetta Smith. The current stewards of the Ohio Theatre, talked about their progress so far.
"For us, the celebrating of the 95th anniversary of the Ohio Theater is an amazing milestone; not for us, because we are the new generation, and we’re very aware of the shoulders upon which we stand, but just to think of all of the people that came before who were responsible for this amazing building still being here," said Michael Bouson, co-owner of the Ohio Theatre. "We’re so happy to be its current stewards and its current protectors, and we hope that it’s here for another 95 years."
Bouson says the renovations are continuing, with the people who have enjoyed the theatre in various ways over the years, in mind.
"Whether it be a fond memory of coming to watch a movie as a child, or a fuzzy memory of coming here during the disco days, I think you’re in for a treat because this is a new Ohio Theater - but not new as in 'modern' - but what we’ve done is we tried to return the building back to what it might’ve been in 1927," said Bouson.
The Ohio Theatre is open for business several nights a week featuring everything from an open mic night to popular local jazz artists. A selection of food and drink is available for people who would like to dine in, while enjoying the entertainment.
