By James Bell
Hays Post

The Fall Art Walk is always a special time for downtown Hays, as a time everyone in the area can come together and enjoy downtown and local artists, but this year a new space will be exhibited among the local art, the new home of the Hays Community Theatre, at 116 E. 11th.

The building, former home of the ARC thrift shop, is being remodeled by the Hays Community Theatre and while the space is still a work in progress it is near completion and ready for tonight’s art walk.

“It’s a volunteer deal and we really had some people step up and help out,” said Travis Grizzell, president of the HCT Board of Directors.

The building will be the permanent home for the non-profit group and will serve as another community space in the downtown area.

During tonight’s walk the HCT will have a variety of art forms, while showing the newly renovated space.

The building is filled with paintings from local painters Nicole Thibodau, Matt Miller and Shannon Trevethan, but visitors to the building will not be limited to just visual art.

“Their stuff is featured as the visual art,” Grizzell said. “We’re gonna have the Hays City Flute Quartet, they are going to be performing from 8 to 9 in here…then we’re also gonna have some culinary arts from Peter Mandy’s, the new Italian-Greek place, they’re going to bring down some hors d’oeuvres for us to put out.”

The HCT’s proximity to the Hays Arts Center, and collaboration with them should help bring the HCT space into the art scene in Hays quickly.

“The Arts Council is absolutely tickled to have a new neighbor that is also the arts; it’s wonderful,” said Brenda Meder, director of the Hays Arts Council. “The idea of that wonderful little organization being just two doors down from the Arts Council is fabulous.”

“It just increases the artistic and cultural vibrancy of Hays,” she said.