PEORIA, Ill. (25 News) – The old Corn Stock Theatre tent in Laura Bradley Park was taken down for the last time in December 2024, but the community theatre is finally ready to begin construction on a new performance space.
Rising costs, getting necessary permits, and figuring out that the new tent will need sprinklers all delayed the project. Leaders said the City of Peoria was great to work with, but permits take time.
In the meantime, Corn Stock shows performed at their Lab Theatre Center and other venues in Central Illinois.
The theater manager, Kenney Delaney, tells me that the team had to figure out how to keep performances going, but now they get to think about the future.
“Okay, the shows must go on, so what are we going to do? And now that it’s finally here, it’s like ‘Oh, this is how it’s supposed to be,’ and then seeing the future, being able to see your legacy coming to fruition,” Delaney said.
Staff is expecting the new tent to last about 50 years, roughly twice as long as the previous one. It will be a semi-permanent structure that can stay up all year, which gives Corn Stock the potential to extend their summer theater season in the future.
The organization technically has enough money to cover all the bills, but leaders don’t want to spend an entire estate gift on this one project, and hope to stay afloat for future improvements. They’ve already raised $400,000, but they’re seeking $800,000 more over the next year.
“There are lots of steps that are being taken behind the scenes, but when you get that visible step where people are seeing construction happening and things going up, that is just the best feeling ever,” said Devyn Farney, Corn Stock’s Board President.
Construction work is expected to begin Monday, August 10, but some electrical work will be done before that. The tent itself will go up in September, but after that the sprinkler system will need to be installed. The whole tent project will be done around October or November.
(Reporting by Taylor Fleming, 25 News)
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