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Making a Difference: Keeping a father’s legacy alive
September 8, 2022
GREEN BAY – The building housing the Tarlton Theatre, located near the intersection of Broadway and Walnut in downtown Green Bay, has lived through many iterations since it was built in 1925.
As the building approaches its 100th birthday, its current owner, Tarl Knight, said the Tarlton Theatre – the structure’s current resident – helps provide the Greater Green Bay community with entertainment not typically found outside of larger cities.
“I saw an opportunity to revive the vibrant property with an eclectic history,” he said. “I consider myself lucky to be a steward of the space that offers so much. We want the Tarlton to be the cornerstone the community deserves.”
Helping organize the Steel Bridge Songfest in Door County from a young age, Knight said he realized early on the value of music and art, as well as the impact it has on a community.
“(It) stirred a desire to recreate a venue for those types of opportunities in the Green Bay market,” he said.
Tarlton start-up
When he moved to Green Bay from Door County, Knight said he saw opportunity in the venue that over the years housed a car dealership, a movie theater and at least two nightclubs.
Knight said he saw a “large, empty space” in the downtown area that could help facilitate creative energy while merging a community building, historic preservation and arts and culture.
“So many people went to the former theater on their first date, saw Star Wars here for the first time or married here,” he said. “It’s an important part of people’s lives in Green Bay.”
Knight said he shared his vision with his business partner and found the “perfect merger” of energy and vision to rejuvenate the theatre.
“The City of Green Bay had plans to raze the building, so we began work to preserve the building,” he said. “The timing was perfect. We made some simple renovations and opened the doors to the Tarlton Theatre in December 2018.”
Little did they know, Knight said, 16 months later, the COVID-19 pandemic gripped the nation.
Changing things up
Knight said they had a change of vision about a year after opening.
“In the beginning, we were focused on live music, bands and songwriters in a live music venue in the heart of downtown,” he said. “That changed quickly a year into operations when we realized all the fringe and extracurricular types of performances, events and experiences that don’t have a home. They didn’t have access to an appropriate venue with the kind of flexibility and amenities this space can provide.”
Knight said the vision also included capitalizing on the original movie screen (which he said is the longest-standing screen in the city), as well as incorporating offerings that catered to outlying groups, such as burlesque shows.
Tarlton Theatre’s curved walls, booth seats and gold table tops take cues from Art Deco architectural elements. Chris Rugowski Photos
“There is a community of people who wanted these, but there were no venues in the near vicinity to support a show like this with a niche audience,” Knight said.
He said it’s a goal of the theatre to never exceed $25 on ticket prices, making them affordable for a broad audience.
“Everyone deserves access to arts and culture and community,” Knight said. “There are people who are disenfranchised economically and culturally, and there aren’t many places with access to things like burlesque, comedy and drag shows. If someone has an idea, we will try it at least once. It’s hard to wrap your head around having a venue that doesn’t have just one thing going for it, but this is a creative space for anything.”
Knight said the 10,000-square-foot venue not only provides its guests with varied entertainment, it also offers a full menu and full-service bars.
Taking a cue from Art Deco architectural elements, he said the Tarlton has curved walls, booth seats, tables topped with gold, Art Deco lamps and a dance floor that can accommodate a jazz orchestra and dancing simultaneously.
Collectively, these elements provide what Knight describes as an “exquisite, but inviting atmosphere where everybody can come in and enjoy high art and universal experiences at a fair price.”
Other uses
Knight said he donates the space as often as he can to charitable organizations – whether that’s St. John’s Homeless Shelter fundraisers, YWCA events or serving as the downtown home of the Weidner Center.
“The Weidner has a wonderful vision, making a deliberate effort to come to the people, in addition to having that wonderful venue on the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay (UWGB) campus,” he said. “That’s been a big break for us – aiding us in delivering great programs.”
In addition, Knight said the theatre will host the Green Bay Film Festival for the next two years – showcasing independent and local films and hosting its festival multiple times a year.
He said he anticipates providing an international menu to reflect the films being shown in an effort to provide a fully interactive experience.
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Tarl Knight is the owner of the Tarlton Theatre in Green Bay. Submitted Photo
Knight said the theatre also co-sponsors the Green Bay Jazz Orchestra and the UWGB Jazz Band, as well as holds quarterly ArtWar live painting competitions, which provides 360-degree viewing of local artists participating in painting speed rounds.
“It’s a metropolitan event you don’t see much in a community our size – a fun thing we can bring into the space and something we sponsor ourselves,” he said. “We also host poetry nights and movies.”
Knight said the Tarlton draws people in from about a 50-mile radius – particularly those in Fond du Lac, Oshkosh or Marinette.
“For bass music and electronic DJ shows, the closest venue is in Milwaukee, so people in their 20s and 30s often make the trek from the Upper Peninsula (of Michigan) and Door County,” Knight said. “The draw depends on the program and the scarcity of the venues.”
Future growth
Knight said he looks forward to the theatre’s growing appeal as the downtown grows and to bringing in even more engagement – for all income levels.
Knight said from his view, the theatre is flourishing in fulfilling its vision.
“We went into this as a high stakes art project – to see if we could bring something to the table downtown,” he said. “We sought to make an impact on the community, save a historic site and bring a new sense of community and gather around cultural offerings downtown to help Green Bay grow. I see the benefits of it – it’s worth it.”
