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Luverne City Council members toured the lower level of the Palace Theatre on Tuesday, Feb. 21, to see recent improvements to dressing rooms and gathering spaces.
Palace director Shawn Kinsinger showed them the “refreshed” areas where performers and musicians store costumes and gear and prepare to go on stage.
“It looks great,” he told the council during his recent council report. “It is really, really nice down there. The carpet is in, there’s nice lighting. It’s warm, it’s inviting.”
He was able to make some of the improvements with a pandemic relief “Shuttered Venue” grant.
Also, a grant from Luverne Area Community Foundation allowed the purchase of a stage monitor.
“It’s helpful, especially when we have shows with a lot of little kids,” Kinsinger said. “We have to have people down there with them, and they need to know when to send them on stage.”
The city of Luverne owns the Palace Theatre building and leases it to the Blue Mound Area Theater Board for operation.