Nine months of fundraising has paid off, and the Chilliwack Cultural Centre is getting new state-of-the-art sound equipment that will be freely available to users of the theatre.

The centre is buying 20 cordless microphones at a cost of $30,000, which will allow performing arts groups to use the 584-seat main theatre without needing to rent expensive equipment.

“Local groups using the space won’t have to spend between one and three thousand dollars on renting microphones,” says Michael Cade, director of the Chilliwack Arts and Cultural Centre Society, which manages the Cultural Centre on behalf of the City of Chilliwack.

Cade confirms that the cost to local groups of using the facility will not change.

A newly approved grant from the Canada Cultural Spaces Fund of the Department of Canadian Heritage is covering half of the required $30,000. The other half is coming from City of Chilliwack, Chilliwack School of Performing Arts, Chilliwack Players’ Guild, the Chilliwack Foundation, and the Chilliwack Arts and Cultural Centre Society.

“We’ve very excited about it, and it’s really going to help the community in being able to use the space,” says Cade.

Opened in Sept. 2010, the Chilliwack Cultural Centre has been financially successful, and offers one large theatre, another black box theatre, a music room, art studios, and an art gallery.

“We are pleased to support important facilities like the Chilliwack Cultural Centre because it serves as a community hub for residents,” said Chilliwack–Fraser Canyon Member of Parliament Mark Strahl in a press release.

“The Chilliwack Cultural Centre provides residents and visitors to the region with lots of great activities, adding to both its cultural and economic strength,” added James Moore, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages.

Chilliwack Progress