A new window installation at the Lyric Theater will be happening near the end of this month.

“We have four new windows that will be installed in the upper level of the theater,” said Tricia Torgerson, president of the Friends of the Lyric board.

The Friends of the Lyric is the volunteer-based community board that runs the Lyric Theater.

“So the local JDA (Job Development Authority) actually owns the building and then the Friends of the Lyric run the theater. It is all volunteer based so we don’t have any employees,” Torgerson said. “On the nights when there’s movies, we have a concession leader who kind of oversees all of the volunteers but it is all volunteer based.”

Lyric Theater concessions stand is operated by volunteers, as is the entire theater.

The Lyric Theater formerly belonged to a private owner before the Friends of the Lyric board took over after the owner decided to sell around 10 years ago. Since then, the board has been looking after the theater with care and community in mind.

“As a board we’ve been interested in making good decisions for the theater, but ultimately it is not our theater. It is the community’s theater and we need to do what is best for the community as a whole,” Torgerson said.

When Friends of the Lyric initially took control of the theater, one of its first updates was putting in all new seats. It also had a digital projector and brand new sound system installed.

The theater is now able to stream movies instead of relying on physical film, which can be a beneficial thing in the middle of a snowy North Dakota December when deliveries can often be delayed.

“There’s been a lot of updates, but things kind of came to a halt when COVID hit,” Torgerson said. “The whole movie industry, I think, just kind of halted for a while and people weren’t going to the movies as much and whatnot.”

Lindsey Bush, left, Mike Nichols, Terri Jacobson, Hannah Voeller, Jodie Kirchofner, Trish Torgerson, Karen Tandeski and Holly Niemi make up the board for the Friends of the Lyric. Not pictured is Roger Sitter, who is also on the board.

Friends of the Lyric is thankful to be seeing those trends turn around a bit as the Lyric Theater visitor numbers go up, making it easier for the board to resume renovation talks.

One of the potential future improvements the board has been discussing include a new heating system.

“The furnace that is in there right now is original to the building, so that’s from the early 1920s,” Torgerson said.

Other project ideas include bathroom renovations, updating the current concession area or building a new one, and renovating the front of the building, which could possibly include a new marquee.

“It just has to go in stages. You can’t just go in and do it all at one time,” Torgerson said regarding the renovation plans. “It’s been an ongoing conversation. It’s just one step at a time.”

The funding for the renovations and updates will hopefully be covered by grants and additional fundraising. The board would like to get accurate estimates of the various projects before applying for relevant state grants to help cover the costs.

As for which projects will take priority in the renovations timeline, it depends on the community, the grants and other factors.

“If we have a grant available for the outside before there’s a grant available for the heating system, that might have to take precedence,” Torgerson said. “So it’s all important.”

One of the reasons the renovations are important is because of the theater’s location on Rugby’s Main Street.

“As with any small town in North Dakota, we want to make sure our Main Street looks good,” Torgerson said.

“We want it to be inviting to people from the community and from outside of the community. We want it to look nice for one thing, but also, we need to make sure that people know that our theater is alive and well and one of the easiest ways to do that is to make sure that we keep it up to date and we keep it inviting,” she said.

The board hopes to use local contractors as much as possible when the time comes for the future renovation projects.

The volunteers who help operate the Lyric Theater are another way the theater involves and impacts the community. Volunteers include community members of all ages, from a 14-year-old high school freshman to 70-year-old retirees.

“You’re never too old to volunteer and help out and there’s always things that can be done,” Torgerson said. “A lot of times people will bring their kids with them because there’s garbage that needs to be taken out after the movie, the coolers need to be restocked with the pop bottles and stuff like that. And it’s good for kids to get involved with that at an early age and to realize the importance of volunteering in town.”

The Friends of the Lyric board secretary, Holly Niemi, coordinates the volunteers. All persons interested in volunteering should reach out to her.

The Lyric Theater is open year-round and movies are shown Friday through Sunday. From Memorial Day to Labor Day, movies are also shown on Monday nights during the summer season.

“Throughout the year, we’ll do special showings. At Christmas time, we have Christmas matinees on Saturdays,” Torgerson said.

The Friends of the Lyric also operate a social media page they use to interact with Rugby residents as well.

“We actually have a couple of polls out there right now just looking for input. At our last meeting, we discussed a few ideas that we think would be fun to try, but we want to know what the community thinks,” Torgerson said.

One of these ideas is a Throwback Thursday movie night when once a month, an older movie will be shown at the theater. The selection of these retro flicks will depend on what the theater can access but will also depend on what types of movies Rugby residents would like to see.

“It’s fun to get their input,” Torgerson said.

Another possible change would be showing matinees on Sunday versus the Sunday evening showings, a change that might work well during the school year.

“We try to stay involved with the community that way and get their input, get their thoughts,” Torgerson said. “We want everybody to be able to come to the movies.”