A night where the Performers are Politicians,
The Candidates are the Judges
And The Audience is the Jury.
Serious topics. Fun TIMES.
the Auditorium’s Radical Roots
For over almost a century, the Richland Center City Auditorium sparked awakenings and challenged the status quo. As it commemorates its 111th anniversary since its hard-fought opening in 1913. It was a pilot program – the first municipal auditorium designed to intersect politics, entertainment and commerce – a publicly owned mixed-used facility that would meet their city’s needs for meeting space and sustainable revenue.
Where Funny Meets Philosophical
A spirit of impassioned civic discourse will be revived through the Driftless Debate Series. This negotiation of big ideas on the auditorium’s historic stage will summon the same revolutionary energy that once fueled Ada James and the suffragists plotting from the hidden rooms beneath the floorboards.
The Driftless Debates will be a place where weighty topics and witty personalities collide. From probing arts funding as a public good or menace, to humanity’s friendship or rivalry with Mother Nature – no concept is off limits for thorough, contrasting exploration by distinguished debaters like public figures, academics and authors. Expect an excavation of brilliant insights and fascinating perspectives, not forceful persuasion.
Our Own Political Pantheon
The series will assemble an eccentric cast of folksy philosophers and quick-witted intellectuals from across Wisconsin to tackle these issues through the time-honored art of debate. Judgment will come from an impartial host joined by a panel featuring local political candidates willing to demonstrate their measured stances before the people. But the true jury remains the Driftless community, with ample opportunity for audience participation.
Educational Access SHOULDN’T BE UP FOR DEBATE
Proceeds will benefit revitalization efforts at the auditorium itself through the Richland County Performing Arts Council, including the estimated $1.7 million still needed for full interior renovations like upgraded seating. But the event’s philanthropic reach extends to supporting The Union’s barrier-free enrichment programming for over 200 underserved youth annually grades 4-12.
Funds will also provide relief for resources at the recently shuttered UW-Richland branch campus like preserving library collections – ensuring all have access to education’s transformative path.
Let the revelations, belly laughs, and profound pondering commence on this people’s stage once more!
- “Richland Center City Auditorium” on Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richland_Center_City_Auditorium
- “Richland Center City Auditorium” on Wisconsin Historical Society: https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/Records/NationalRegister/NR1793
- “City Auditorium” document on Richland Center’s official website: https://www.richlandcenterwi.gov/sites/default/files/fileattachments/about_richland_center/page/2543/city-auditorium-revised1.pdf
- Richland County Performing Arts Council Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/RichlandCountyPerformingArtsCouncil/
- Richland County Performing Arts Council official website: https://www.rcpac.org/
