FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) National acts George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic, Stone Sour and Chase Rice will help to reintroduce the Clyde Theater to patrons when it opens again this spring after a major renovation.
In several Facebook posts early Tuesday, the Clyde Theater announced eight scheduled shows for the newly reopened theater. They include:
Stone Sour with The Bronx on Wednesday, May 16
Fitz and the Tantrums on Tuesday, June 12
Badfish: A Tribute to Sublime on Friday, June 15
Chase Rice, the Lambs & Lions Tour on Saturday, June 16
Zoso: The Ultimate Led Zeppelin Experience on Saturday, June 23
George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic on Thursday, July 12
Who’s Bad: The Ultimate Michael Jackson Experience on Saturday, Aug. 4 An Evening With GHOST on Tuesday, May 29
“It’s been a long time coming so we’re just ready to give the people of Fort Wayne something that they’ve never really experienced before,” General Manager Rick Kinney said.
The Clyde Theater in Quimby Village along Bluffton Road underwent a $5 million renovation to transform it from a former movie theater into a state-of-the-art concert venue. More than half of the $5 million project was privately funded, with a major investment from Sweetwater’s Chuck and Lisa Surack.
Kinney said it wasn’t exactly easy to get the acts to commit. “Honestly, it’s been a little bit of a challenge because no one has ever performed in this venue before. It’s only been a movie theater for its entire life so it was a little bit of a challenge to get the agents convinced that this is going to be one of the best venues in the country.”
He said it’s a unique place to Fort Wayne and Northeast Indiana. “We have created a venue that really is a place where people of all ages and backgrounds can come and we want to offer music to Fort Wayne that reaches into all those demographics.”
One of the most recent additions is a 7,000 square foot area attached to the side of the building for the artists. “That’s in order to transform this building from 1950’s art deco movie theater into a high quality world-class entertainment venue.”
It’s overwhelming for the young entrepreneur, but rewarding. “I have a lot of good support from people like Chuck and Lisa Surack and the team there that’s really helping us drive this into something that’s much better than it was going to ever be without them.”
The Suracks also own Village Bowl next door to the theatre. NewsChannel 15 asked about plans for that space, but was told those announcements will come after the theatre is up and running.
Tickets for these show go on sale Friday, you can get them here. More shows will be announced in the coming weeks.
