All proceeds raised benefit the renovation and reopening of the Alhambra Theatre, as it marks its 100th anniversary.
The Alhambra Theatre is rich in Evansville history. John Parker, an event organizer for The Alhambra Arts and Music Festival said restoring the theatre will help downtown Evansville increase culturally and economically.
“The outside has been fixed up, and the inside is what we’ve got to work on,” he said. “It needs a lot of love.”
The funds and awareness raised during the festival are crucial to the project. There isn’t an exact number, but there are estimates, he said.
Parker voiced the needs of The Alhambra.
“It is going to take a lot of construction,” Parker said. “We’ve got to get everything up to code and ADA compliant, which is quite a bit of work.”
Parker said the reopening will enable more people to come and make the downtown area vibrant again. Artists expressed the importance of the Alhambra for downtown as well.
Sara Rappee, handmade stone and silver jeweler, spoke about the importance of art and public exposure in Evansville.
“It seems like we don’t put enough effort into a lot of our history and our culture and this is to try to hold onto some of those things,” Rappee said. “To get the community to come together to keep them open so the public gets to enjoy them.”
The Alhambra Arts and Musical Festival provided a great opportunity for local artists and musicians to connect with potential clients and showcase their talents.
Salt the Earth is a local progressive bluegrass band consisting of Amanda Adams, Eric Biesel, and Ben Rodenberg.
“This is an opportunity to get out and listen to some local artists and get a chance to expose some people to our music,” Biesel said.