Scott Wartman

swartman@nky.com

Sometimes, random thoughts can lead to big things.

And so it might come to pass more than 20 years after his death, the late Frank Zappa inspired a potential use for Newport's vacant Imax theater.

The eccentric composer's late-period album, "The Yellow Shark," popped into the head of Kentucky Symphony Orchestra director J.R. Cassidy when searching for possible concert halls in Northern Kentucky. The shark image reminded him of the Newport Aquarium where, for the past 14 years, an adjacent Imax theater has sat vacant.

A year ago, Cassidy approached Newport on the Levee for a tour of the unused theater.

"My eyes really lit up when I saw what the size of the stage could be," Cassidy said. "Every seat in here is a great seat."

Since then, Cassidy has quietly worked on a proposal that would turn the 400-seat theater into a 600-seat concert hall – a home for the KSO and a venue for touring acts and a wide range of artistic endeavors.

He held a fundraiser in the theater for the symphony last Saturday for about 150 people.

It impressed Campbell County Judge-executive Steve Pendery, who attended the fundraiser. "It would be a perfect use," Pendery said. "Why should it sit vacant?"

It's a long way from a reality. And few ideas have come forward to reuse the theater since the Imax closed in 2003 after two years in operation.

The idea has excited the owners of the theater, Newport on the Levee.

"I thought it was a perfect idea," said Harold Dull, the Levee's general manager. "I'm hopeful J.R. is going to be able to get enough support for it."

The oddity of the space has kept suitors away. Cavernous ceilings and odd geometric layout of the lobby has constrained the use of the space.

Sure, ideas have come up every now and then. One group wanted to put a planetarium-style screen to show short films, Dull said. But no one has put up the money yet to do anything with the theater. Dull said there's also another potential business looking at the theater right now, but he wouldn't give details.

Hurdles, especially financial, remain ahead

The KSO must still cross some large hurdles. Cassidy hopes by the end of June he'll know if he'll have enough financial backing from donors to pull it off. It'll probably take $6 million to renovate. That means adding seating, converting the projector room into a balcony, rehabbing the stage and repairing the elevators. He envisions a cabaret-style lounge for smaller acts on the second level of the lobby.

It's a bargain compared to building a performing arts center from scratch, such as the $175 million performing arts center opened six years ago in Carmel, Indiana, Cassidy said.

"This becomes something that is just cool and, in the grand scheme of things, not a lot of money when you look at if you had to build it, you had to buy the land, furnish the parking, have the roads in and out," Cassidy said.

The KSO would be a tenant of the Levee and pay rent; Levee officials declined to say how much the rent would be.

The Levee has used the Imax theater for storage but kept it in good shape. Walking through the theater this week, it looks as if it closed down this year. Flip a switch behind a concession stand and a sign comes to life, showing popcorn on sale for $3.25. An old projector and empty film canisters with labels from old Imax movies, such as "Into the Deep", sit frozen in time in the projection room. The seats, aisles and stage all look new.

People walking by on the Levee plaza often try to open the door, thinking it's a common space.

NKY lacking entertainment spaces

The idea is much bigger than the Kentucky Symphony. Yes, it would provide a stable home for the KSO, which has led a nomadic existence the past 25 years splitting time most often at Devou Park, Northern Kentucky University and Florence Baptist Church. The KSO would still play at those places, Cassidy said. But having a permanent home would give the orchestra the ability to put on more holiday programming and help it find a successor when Cassidy, who founded the orchestra, retires.

"We're still going to go out and do the free kids concerts in the schools," Cassidy said. "We're still going to do Devou Park every summer. Why would we not do that? That's part of what makes us unique."

Cassidy, however, said the vision goes beyond the symphony. The theater could become Northern Kentucky's premier entertainment showcase, something missing on the south side of the Ohio River since the Beverly Hills Supper Club burned down 40 years ago in Southgate, he said.

"I think that this makes more sense than many things we've come across in a number of years, because of all the things already in place here," Cassidy said. "You have the parking, the restaurants, you have the window on Cincinnati."



