Sewickley Theater Group Seeks to Raise $3 Million

Village Theater Company is poised to bring the movies back to Sewickley next year with the help of fundraising efforts aimed at raising $3 million in pledges.

Village Theater is a non-profit organization in Sewickley spearheading the effort to get a new, two-screen family movie theater up and running in the heart of the village.

Brian Duggan, board treasurer, acknowledged the group's target goal to raise $3 million in pledges will be challenging in this economic environment. 

"That said, we believe that having a theater in town will benefit everyone in the community and ensure that we will always have a vibrant village," Duggan said in a news release. "Our hope is that everyone in the community will see that value and pledge to this project. So far, the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive."

Susan Kaminski, board vice president, said there are three components to fundraising efforts: living room events, foundation support and broad-based community appeals. 

She said the focus on living room events -- fundraisers that occur in private homes -- is meant to build a base of communication and early donations.

"We have more than 20 hosts who have offered to hold fundraisers in their homes. To date, six of these living room events have been held and the response has been excellent,” Kaminski said in a news release. 

Village Theater, working with Forbes Trail Development Co,   to bring a family movie theater back to Sewickley that screens not only American independent and foreign films, but also second-run and older films.   was later announced in February as a potential location for the theater. 

Plans are to open the theater in mid-2013. The start date will be directly tied to the success of fundraising efforts. Initial capital raised will enable the group to fund both theater construction and a minimum of six months of operations. 

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Make a Pledge

To make a tax-deductible contribution to the theater, a pledge form is available online at villagetheatercompany.com/make-a-pledge.

Donations at any level that are pledged prior to June 30 will put the donor in the early adopter category and give them a seat in the Front Row.

Front Row members will be invited to the first movie ever shown in the Village Theater that plans to open in mid-2013.