The Rivoli Theater was built on Pendleton’s Main Street in the 1920’s. Its function as a theater evolved with the times until the late 1980’s when the movie theater closed. It was vacant and deteriorating for the next two decades.

The Rivoli Restoration Coalition was founded in 2010 to restore the shuttered historic Rivoli Theater and transform it into a contemporary center for community-based performing arts and culture. In addition to bringing to our community the many benefits of a state-of-the-art venue on Main Street in Pendleton, the founders envisioned that a restored Rivoli would create a place of interest contributing to the economic vitality of Pendleton and Eastern Oregon.

The Coalition conducted an exhaustive analysis of the many challenges it faced, including a careful assessment of the physical structure, a confirmation of local interest in the project and the community’s desire to complete the work, and development of initial architectural concepts and plans for theater restoration. Opsis Architecture of Portland, Oregon, captured many of the results of the Coalition’s investigation in a Feasibility Study completed in February 2011. Opsis confirmed the integrity of the structure and the local needs that a restored Rivoli would meet.

The Rivoli Restoration Coalition, an Oregon non-profit corporation, achieved its status as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization in March 2011.

The initial Coalition members commissioned an in-depth exploration stage in September 2011 that lasted several months. The Coalition reached out to the community through several multi-day workshops, presentations from the Coalition, and discussions with individuals, organizations, and the interested public through open-house meetings. The extended dialogue revealed the community’s clear interest in restoring the Rivoli and willingness to support the project through diverse means.

The local community provided the initial objectives and purposes of the Coalition:

• To create a versatile performing arts facility that satisfies a wide variety of performance and civic needs, now and for future generations;
• To promote cooperation and mutual commitment among the many individuals and groups who have worked to make the concept of a community performing arts center a reality;
• To support our community partners in their efforts to foster personal growth, economic vitality, and quality of life for all citizens; and
• To develop a proficient structure for the eventual management and daily operation of the facility, ensuring responsible stewardship of the financial resources invested in restoring the Rivoli and its operation.

Knowing that the support of our local and regional partners is vital to our progress, the Coalition continues to adhere to these community values. The research and findings of the Coalition, confirmed by Opsis Architecture, form the foundation of our confidence in the project’s continued success.