Spotlight Community Theatre founder Courtney Wisely is leasing a space at 214 E. Main St. in Festus where she plans to open The Green Room, a multi-faceted business venture designed to provide funding for the nonprofit theater group.
The building on East Main Street also houses the Reflections Medical Spa.
Wisely said she hopes to open The Green Room sometime in November.
“The Green Room is a for-profit subsidiary of Spotlight Community Theatre, meaning all profits from The Green Room go back into supporting Spotlight,” Wisely said.
The Spotlight Community Theatre organization is based in Festus but has members from all around the county and beyond.
Wisely said the theater group will not hold shows at The Green Room. Instead it will offer several businesses in one space – a shared office work space; a hangout for youth; a hangout for adults; a small events venue and other ventures.
“By day, it is a co-working lounge, a private space where people can have a monthly membership to or get a one-hour, half-day or full-day pass,” she said. “When they’re here, they can have (complimentary) coffee, Wi-Fi and an extremely comfortable place to spread out and work rather than taking up space at a local cafe for an extended period of time. That will be open 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. I call it a co-working lounge.”
She said the cost to use the shared work space will be $5 for an hour, $10 for four hours, $15 for a full-day pass and $50 for a monthly membership.
Wisely said that while places like The Green Room are a new concept to this region, they are popular in other parts of the country.
She said she is willing to lend her technology expertise to those who rent office space in The Green Room.
“I can help them with their software, computers, etc.,” she said.
From 4-9 p.m. each day, the operation will shift to a space for youth to gather.
“It will be geared toward teens and other local youth,” Wisely said. “It will be a safe space to hang out with their friends, play board games, listen to music, maybe do karaoke, play video games, join a Dungeons and Dragons or chess club. Snacks and drinks will be available for purchase during this time. We’ll also have gaming tournaments for them. We’ll have pizza nights.”
At 9 p.m. each day, the Green Room becomes a social club for adults.
“The third section of the day is 9 p.m. to midnight Sunday through Thursday and 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. Friday and Saturday,” Wisely said. “This will be for those 18 and older. We’ll have coffee and cocktails. We’ll have open-mic nights and cabaret or instrumental types of performances. We’ll have adult game nights, trivia and karaoke.”
Wisely said she also has plans for using The Green Room during weekend mornings and afternoons.
“Saturdays and Sundays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. we will be open for private events like birthday parties, princess parties and corporate events,” she said. “On the weekend mornings, we will offer vocal and acting lessons. That’s 9-11 a.m.”
For all activities it offers, there are membership fees or cover charges for entrance.
She said that all of The Green Room operations are intended to support Spotlight Community Theatre, the performance group she started in March 2022. About 400 people are involved in the organization in some capacity, and its last production, “The Wizard of Oz,” drew large crowds to its shows in August at Jefferson College.
“We had 1,800 people come to see our performances of ‘The Wizard of Oz,’” Wisely said. “Because of our growth, we knew we needed a way to help sustain Spotlight financially so we can continue to entertain the community for years to come.”
For more information, follow The Green Room on Facebook, Instagram or TikTok. Wisely also has set up a GoFundMe account at gofund.me/ed4b1bef for The Green Room.
Spotlight Community Theatre’s next production is “Steel Magnolias,” which the troupe will perform Nov. 9-12 at Jefferson Memorial VFW Post 3777, 900 VFW Drive, Crystal City.
