Rogers Theater passes from Vogelheim family to Heidemann; plans to expand stage for shows
Local resident, city council member, attorney, singer, actor, and entrepreneur Karl Heidemann has purchased the Rogers City Theater from long time owner Richard Vogelheim. ?I?ve talked to Dick about purchasing the theater for about 10 years now,? said Heidemann, ?but we?ve been talking seriously for the last year. We really didn?t come to an agreement until just before he left for the winter for Alabama.
?I really think Rogers City needs a theater and needs it all year long. Certainly it is in my plans to put a stage in here so we can have some live theater, concerts, dance recitals, and more cultural events,? Karl said. ?But basically it is a movie theater.? There will not be any immediate changes until the summer months when Heidemann has plans, if all goes well, to begin the project of installing a stage.
The stage would be built forward, eliminating the first 12 rows of seats, because at least 35-40 feet is needed for a stage. The building still would leave a good-sized movie theater and adequate seating for a large audience. At least 400 seats would remain.
?THE NICE thing about this theater is (wife) Mary Ann and I traveled all over the country and we looked at theaters…well, I looked at theaters and dragged her along,? Karl said with a laugh. ?We looked especially at the small town theaters. ?Here in Rogers City we have this wonderful big screen neighborhood theater. Most theaters are not around anymore. They?ve been converted to other uses.?
Heidemann said the theater in Harrisville shut down and became a mini-business incubator, and the Petoskey downtown theater closed down and the owners built a new multiplex theater at a mall. ?What we have here is a jewel,? Karl said. ?But of all the theaters we saw, ours is truly one of the nicest ones. It?s big and has a big screen. ?I think Richard (Vogelheim) took very good care of the theater. Obviously there are some things that need to be fixed. We may have to redo the entire heating system and I need to figure out what we can do about it.? Heidemann said he wanted to retain the beauty of the building and keep as much of the open space as possible to preserve the ?open? feeling.
Heidemann believes Rogers City was ready for some cultural expansion and has been ready for a long time.
?JUST LOOK at some of the things Bryan Mills has done with the (RCHS) Drama Club. The turnout has been amazing. People have an appetite for it. There is a lot of talent in this area and a lot of people appreciate those talents,? Karl continued. Heidemann was the founding president of the Huron Shores Humanities Council and believes this is one small step of obtaining a cultural center in Rogers City. ?Perhaps this will spur other activities,? Karl said.
?The purchase group consists of Mary Ann and me,? Karl said. ?We had looked at whether a group should buy it, but I had certain ideas and I think I can move a lot faster as an independent business person than a non-profit organization could.
?They are wonderful organizations, but for what I have in mind, I thought it was more appropriate for us to take it over.? Heidemann thought the non-profit approach would be a hindrance because they must have fundraisers, apply for grants, and abide by funding restrictions.
Heidemann will explore the possibility of changing the days and times of the movie showings, but says it will always have at least the weekend showings as a minimum.
?WE WILL have our big grand opening January 1, 2003 with ?My Big Fat Greek Wedding? showing. There will be free popcorn before the show and after we?ll have a little ?wedding reception? right here in the lobby with more refreshments,? Karl said.
?If we can draw people in and I can talk to them and see what they want — sure, I have great ideas, but if people don?t want my ideas, then we?ll have to adjust.? Heidemann said he wants to give people what they want to see and what they?d like to see developed in the theater.
?In the meantime I?d like to talk to as many people as I can and find out what they want.? Heidemann said he plans to keep the same people working if they?ll stay and work for him.
?They know what they?re doing,? Karl said. ?Everything happened so fast…I?ve turned on light switches and nothing happened. I don’t even know what switch goes to what result.? Heidemann purchased the entire building which includes the ice cream shop and the VitalCare office next door. Heidemann said he plans to run the ice cream shop in the summer months and Mary Ann has some great ideas concerning specialty coffee machines and the possibility of creating an outdoor cafe, as they also own the parking lot next to the building.
KARL SAID they plan to create an atmosphere of personal service on the hometown level in order to compete with the malls in larger towns. He mentioned other possibilities such as teens participating in ?battle of the bands,? recitals, and even professional entertainment groups on occasion. A stage would make the building more versatile and more financially operational while utilizing more building time. ?We have this beautiful building and it?s open three nights of the week for only six hours,? Karl said. ?It must become more versatile. ?The name will remain the same, ?The Rogers City Theater.? ? He plans to turn up the heat a little more and try to deal with the heating system problem first.
The stage plans are tentative for this summer, depending on what he has to deal with first in the heating and electrical department. ?The acoustics are wonderful,? Karl said. ?We do need to improve
?I?LL ALSO plan on having a suggestion sheet in the theater where people can check off certain ideas and have a place to write in new ones or add comments,? Karl added.
?I think Richard, who ran this as a family business, was very tired and wanted to be finished with the responsibility. It would have been shut down for the winter when he went to Alabama, but now it can remain open.
?I think Richard was concerned about his daughter (because she was interested in the theater) but as a practical matter, they looked at it, and she?s down in Alabama with her family and a good job and maybe in 15 years I?ll be feeling tired like Richard feels now, and she can come back up here and buy it back.? ?Richard believes the way I do, that Rogers City needs a theater and it needs to be open, so I think Richard is happy.?
