Earlier this year, the VCA board of directors made the unanimous decision to sell the historic Vermillion Theater at 4 W. Main.

The sale was completed in July and the property, now owned by Joe and Amanda Raiche, is in the process of transforming into the AV Lounge. The AV will join downtown nightlife as an all-ages venue for music and other performances, with plans for additional endeavors. Joe Raiche is a member of Vermillion band Fine Mess (formerly Beard) and a senior lecturer with the USD English Department. Amanda Raiche is the Youth Services Librarian with the Vermillion Public Library.

Although the original business plan for the Cultural Association included the Vermillion Theater as a supplemental venue to the Coyote Twin for concerts and occasional movies, recent years proved for us that we have the flexibility to operate without sustaining a second location. "We came to the conclusion that if we were no longer needed as stewards of the space, it was best for the town that someone else carry on the arts and culture vision for the building," said VCA board president Susan Heggestad.

Very luckily, VCA received a local offer to preserve the historic building and host the same kind of cool programming in the space we always dreamed of. We are tremendously excited for the AV and look forward to the many event partnerships to come.

First, the biggest movie of summer for the first time in years wasn’t a Marvel or Disney property, but Top Gun: Maverick, with 2,245 admits to the Coyote Twin for that title alone. And from Downton Abbey and Maverick in May to Elvis and Where the Crawdads Sing in July, it was definitely been a summer of movies for grown-ups rather than the usual four-quadrant, family fair—adults and seniors were absolutely our dominant audience this summer. By comparison, Disney’s only kids movie release, Lightyear, came went nearly unnoticed across the country. We’ve also seen a sharp increase in moviegoers from Yankton—it's been fun to introduce our little theater to new friends from up Highway 50!

As we welcome new and larger audiences, we're looking at adapting a few of our business procedures. First, we have a comprehensive plan to create a loyalty program that will reward frequent (and even occasional!) moviegoers for their patronage. It will function through text message, like most fast food chains or big box stores, with no upfront buy-in fee. In fact, you can get started now by sending YOTEFLIX to 866-968-613 and have Coyote Twin showtimes texted directly to you each Friday. Full implementation of the rewards program has to wait until we upgrade our point-of-sale technology, but that conversation is under way!

Next, we're plotting a change to the concessions area in the Coyote Twin lobby. This refresh of the space is long overdue, and we plan to implement a new traffic pattern that will streamline the popcorn purchasing and auditorium load-in experience. Once construction gets under way this fall, things might get a little topsy-turvy with us for awhile, but we will not need to close our doors, and we promise to keep the popcorn machine operating throughout! With luck and some key contractor partnerships, we hope to have refitted counter service by the holidays. 🤞

Make your own lantern to contribute to the festival! Artist Amy Fill will have lantern-making supplies at the upcoming community events. Keep an eye on @vermculture for more details.

Sept 8 – Vermillion Area Farmers' Market, Clay County Fairgrounds

Sept 13 – River Appreciation Day, Clay County Park

Sept 26 – Maker Monday, Vermillion Public Library