For many in Levelland, Texas, about 25 miles west of Lubbock, the Wallace Theater has been a closed building on the downtown corner of Houston Street, across from the Hockley County courthouse.
The theater first opened in 1928 by Wallace Blankenship as part of what would become the largest chain of small-town movie theaters in the U.S. It closed in the 1980s, but many still hold memories that they want future West Texans to share.
George Keeling purchased the theater in 2002 with the plan to restore it. He passed away in 2016, but his daughter, Wallace Theater executive director Alycyn Keeling, was already committed to seeing her father’s goal to the end.
“To look back at where we started, to where we are today, it truly is remarkable, and it's all because of the community support and that people have jumped on board,” Keeling said. “They're donating their time, you know, they're making it happen.”
The years of work on this restoration have not always been easy. The theater had seen damage and dust build up, and the auditorium’s old seats were past saving. But Keeling said she was on a mission.
Teaming up with sound technology professor Dolf Guardiola from Levelland’s South Plains College, Keeling said they got parts of the theater in a state that could host events to bring attention and funding toward the work to be done at the Wallace.
“We got the lobby into a shape where we could actually bring people in,” Keeling said. “It still had holes in the ceiling, and it still had the water damage on the walls, but it had this magic to it, right? When you walked in, it was so special.”
Keeling’s team worked from old photos and records to bring back as much as they could from the Wallace’s original style. After clean-up days with members of the community, new murals in the auditorium were painted to match the original, with the ceiling’s floral design hand-painted by historic paint restoration specialists.
She tracked down pieces of the old carpet from classic car collectors and found some in far corners to inspire new looks for the building.
“We found this other piece of carpet, and it matched another photo that I had that was from the Wallace in the 1920s, and it was the carpet from the 1920s,” Keeling said. “It's more of a floral pattern, so now that's the wallpaper in the women's restroom.”
Keeling said joining the American League of Historic Theatres, a non-profit organization that supports restoring and sustaining historic theaters, provided her with connections to other individuals around the country who took on similar missions, and could give her help.
Some elements of the Wallace’s design are new, like the open dance floor in the auditorium, the film reel chandelier in the lobby, and the technology in the auditorium for movies, concerts, and theatrical productions, but Keeling said all of it comes from a love for the history of Hockley County and support of the Levelland community.
Levelland has been called “the City of Mosaics,” and many famous musicians have graduated from South Plains College’s well-known Commercial Music program, so Keeling feels like the restoration is an important step in preserving the city’s arts culture, but some of these new updates and partnerships with area teachers are also designed to give the Wallace an educational value as much as entertainment.
Keeling said the Wallace has received a collective impact grant from the National Endowment for the Arts "to ensure that all 4,500 students across Hockley county have access to high-quality arts," as well as funding to ensure that those students can come to shows at the Wallace at no cost.
“Studies have shown that utilizing the arts helps with students' retention, helps improve test scores, graduation rates, school attendance, and so if we can support in that way, then that's how we can make a difference for students in Hockley County,” Keeling said.
Board member Dillon Palmer-Webb went to high school with Keeling in Levelland and came to the project two years ago, and he said it was the educational potential that really brought him in.
“My family's been in Levelland for 100 years as of last year, so I always heard stories,” Webb said. “Once I figured out that the Wallace was also going to be instrumental in educating over 4,000 kids in the area, that was kind of the linchpin for me.”
Webb said he’s hoping the work that has gone into this restoration will ripple out and inspire others to take pride in their small towns. He’s now working to establish an endowment that would make sure the work of Keeling’s team will last for future generations.
“Sometimes these theaters will go through a huge renovation,” Webb said. “They'll get rocking and rolling, and they'll be doing well for several years, and then, for whatever reason, activity falls off, revenue falls off, and they may be in a situation where they can't pay pay the bills that they're still paying for in the renovation, or they just can't stay open, so an endowment would protect that.”
For Libby Tubb-Thetford, whose family was among the first in Hockley County more than 100 years ago, this theater holds a special place in her childhood.
“I came to this beautiful Wallace theater when I was a little girl, and I love watching what they're doing,” Thetford said. “It's real special to me and my family, the Tubb family, so that's why I'm here to help out, because they have done a beautiful job.”
Thetford has educated thousands of children in Hockley County, including Alycyn Keeling. She’s proud of the work between long-time family friends and community members and what this means for the history – and the future – of Levelland and Hockley County.
“I mean, it's just they've moved mountains over the years,” Thetford said. “We're so excited that it just brings tears to my eyes.”
The Wallace Theater at 823 Houston Street in Levelland will reopen with a red carpet event on Saturday, Sept. 20, starting at 5 p.m., including food and drinks and a performance by Austin-based band Blind Date in the new auditorium. Tickets can be purchased here.