Last week Doug and Deb Proby announced that after 22 years of profitability, they had sold the Raven’s Cry Theatre business. The new owners, though, are practically neighbours.
Christopher August works in the Rights and Title Department at the shíshálh Nation government offices, a stone’s throw away from Raven’s Cry in Sechelt. The self-described “huge movie buff” would catch matinées at the theatre when he had the chance. Months ago, he told Deb Proby “out of the blue” that if she ever decided to sell, he would be interested.
It turns out she had decided. The husband and wife team, in their sixties, were ready for retirement.
August then reached out to his aunt Jessie August, who has a background in business administration, to see if she would partner with him. “She was game,” said Chris. “The opportunity was there and I just jumped into it.”
In December, Jessie began working part time at the theatre, familiarizing herself with the box office, projector, concession stand, scheduling and the other fundamentals of running one of the Sunshine Coast’s iconic arts and culture hubs.
Chris, who served on shíshálh Nation council for more than four years, was familiar with the business through the Probys’ lease arrangement with the Nation, which owns the building.
“It was always something that crossed my mind, that our previous leaders from the Nation had built this facility for the Nation… I always felt like it would come full circle,” August said. “I just didn’t realize it was going to be me.”
This will be the pair’s first foray into business ownership, but they are optimistic about opportunities on the Sunshine Coast. Both have post-secondary educations in business, and Jessie has also served as interim chief administrative officer for the Nation. “This is a great first opportunity,” she said. “It kind of came up and we were in a position to be able to do it, which is great. But I certainly am not looking at stopping here and I don’t think Chris is, either.”
Raven’s Cry Theatre isn’t like regular theatres – movie or otherwise. It was built in the early 1990s with funding from the federal government and was initially intended to be used as a live-performance theatre, but was later converted to a cinema to make the business more sustainable. The Probys bought the business in 1998, which at that point had a 1950s film projector.
The Probys invested about $45,000 for major upgrades to the audio system, and installed a bigger screen and a concession stand. The first film to make it in the new space was Titanic. Since then, they have replaced carpets and invested in digital projection.
Raven’s Cry was the first theatre in Canada to run Sunday screenings of the Metropolitan Opera, and was the second in the country to get a movable cinema-sized projection screen, allowing the theatre to double as a live-events space.
The business model is unique, said Doug Proby, since revenue from movies is used to offset the expense of live performances.
That business model won’t change in the near future as the Augusts familiarize themselves with the theatre’s extensive programming, which includes dance, music recitals and independent films along with Hollywood blockbusters. They have been working with the Probys to understand the business and the programming.
“Deb and Doug have done an outstanding job of getting the business to where it is now,” said Jessie August. “There’s a tremendous amount to learn.”
