Peerless Theatre attendance climbs; Brandt steps down

    At their annual meeting Nov. 15, the board of directors  of Golden Plains Recreation Center/Peerless Theatre touted fiscal successes in 2018 and said farewell to president Jerry Brandt, who will be retiring due to health concerns.
    They also hailed the success of new, specialty offerings at the Peerless Theatre, like showings of Spanish-language films on Fridays and films for seniors on selected Mondays.
    Treasurer Jolene McCallum said admissions had climbed by almost 1,400 since 2017 to reach 7,771 admits this year. She anticipates the theater will break even in 2018, and also pointed out they did not have to draw on investments or credit as in the past.
    The building has managed to fill all of its available upstairs and downstairs office space, and is also accommodating meetings such as church fellowships and Fellowship of Christian Athletes gatherings.
    McCallum recognized the GPRC’s efforts to cut down on personnel costs and rely more on volunteer help, prioritizing the employment of local young people. Board members have also volunteered their time to help with the running of the theater.
    Last month, about 160 hours were paid, totaling about $3,000. Concessions remain the theater’s best money-maker, and bookings went up by 12 percent.
    Top-grossing movies in 2018 included “Incredibles 2,” which sold 665 tickets and made $3,096.75, “I Can Only Imagine,” which sold 531 tickets and made $2259.25, and “Avengers: Infinity War,” which sold 316 tickets and made $1,663.50.

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