THE STOREFRONT THEATER

Small Town Main Streets have suffered as goods, services, entertainment—and the jobs that go with them—moved away. In Downtown Lyons, where businesses have closed their doors, a unique event space is developed from the community’s input that uses an abandoned storefront to transforms Main Street into an outdoor theater. As they build the theater, a documentary is proposed by the people of Lyons - “Decades: A story of Lyon’s Downtown from the founding to the present day.” Over 100 people volunteer with their period costumes and vintage cars to make this movie debut in their new theater. THE STOREFRONT THEATER is a unique event space that transforms Main Street into an outdoor theater by using an abandoned freestanding storefront wall in downtown Lyons, Nebraska as its site. The wall is modified with two hydraulic pump arms so that the awning and false front fold down over the sidewalk with the push of a button, providing seating for 100. Both the seats and the screen retract and disappear when not in use, giving the impression that there is nothing unusual in this town, leaving only word- of-mouth accounts for inquiring visitors.