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Randall Theatre stakes out its own niche Robin Downward, executive director of Randall Theatre. [Submitted photo] Friday Mar 24, 2017 at 12:01 AM After a successful eight years in its flagship theater location, the Randall Theatre is opening a second location in Jacksonville. I caught up with Robin Downward, executive director at the company, to talk about his plans for the new space. JG: Robin, tell us a little bit about the history and intent of the Randall Theatre. RD: Randall Theatre was formed in 2010 with the idea that live theater could be made more accessible by instilling in it a sense of family for the patrons. It was formed with the idea that theater should be for the masses and not just for the people that could afford it. I grew up in a family of seven. I was the youngest. We were not rich people, quite the opposite. All of us had artistic talents of one form or another and because of that, our home was quite a circus. All our friends wanted to come to our house and play because there was always something fun going on. Working professionally, I had been involved in numerous productions in beautiful theaters where people would come dressed to the nines. They would buy their ticket, sit and watch the show, get up when it was done and leave. House staff were helpful and professional, but not necessarily "fun" and inviting. To me, theater should be fun. The theater was named after one of my brothers who had a huge impact on my life, Randall Joseph Downward. When I was 8 years old, he passed away. He was 18 and just about to graduate high school. Randy was a magician both literally and figuratively. He could sing and act, he was a filmmaker, and an electronic genius. Randy loved the art and illusion of magic, was an incredible artist and had an engineers tinkering mind. Most importantly, he had a gentle spirit. ... The Randall Theatre is a full volunteer-based, non-profit theater company. .. The Randall is one of only four theaters in the nation to offer a "Pay What You Want" program at the door for every show we produce. As we have no benevolent benefactors or large corporate sponsors, we have been primarily self sustaining. For a non-profit theater company to exist beyond its second year is rare. For one to survive being self-sustaining built on volunteers for seven years doing eight productions a year is unheard of. JG: What productions are you excited about for the 2017 season? RD: This season has quite a lineup. We opened with a farce "Sherlock Holmes and the Curious Adventure of the Clockwork Prince." Next up a little known Stephen Sondheim musical "Marry Me A Little." ("Marry Me A Little" runs through April 9 in Medford).  ... May 5 opens the well known musical "On The Town." After that Neil Simon's "California Suite" opening June 23, Opening July 28 is Mel Brooks' musical "Young Frankenstein" and the thriller "Dial M For Murder" opens Sept. 15. In October we have a 13-night haunted house fundraiser in our 12,000 square foot warehouse. ... We will finish out our 2017 season with the beautiful musical of "Little Woman." JG: You are opening a second location in Jacksonville. What led to that decision and why now? RD: The Randall Theatre in Medford has only 61 seats. We knew at some point that as we grew we would need to find a way to expand our theater. ... In 2016, one of our board members introduced me to Brian Stellar, the pastor for the Calvary Church in Jacksonville. They had been thinking about using their space for more community service oriented activities. ... The church fulfills its desire to be more community oriented by allowing the Randall Theatre to partner in the space and the Randall Theatre would gain not only a 140-seat theater, but have rooms for rehearsals, meetings and events that would benefit the theater company in the short and long term. JG: What sort of support would you like to see from the Jacksonville community as you expand into those markets? RD: We have been sincerely humbled by the outpouring of support we have received by our new community by the expansion into Jacksonville. I would just love to see people come out and give us a try. We have something to offer that is indeed different than other theaters — not better, just different. We also want to be part of the community and support the businesses in Jacksonville. With how great this is, there are improvements that need to be made. ... A whole new stage needs to be constructed along with a new technical both to suit both the church's needs and the theater's. Both organizations are hoping that there might be some patrons or businesses who would be willing to assist financially with the improvements that need to be made. New signage will be necessary, good quality body microphones that can be shared by both organizations will be needed as well. There has been a donation of $2,600 from the Jacksonville Boosters for stage work, but there is still more funding that is needed to help with improvements. ... Lastly, we want people to come experience a new breed of theater. A theater experience that is fun, inviting and memorable. Our reviews have always highlighted the enthusiasm of our performers. We hope that our patrons, both new and old, will be just as enthusiastic. Randall Theatre can be reached at 541-632-3258 and online at randalltheatre.com — Ashland resident Jeffrey Gillespie is a Daily Tidings columnist, arts reviewer and freelance writer. Email him at [email protected].