Nov 4, 2025 By Garrett Neese 5 min read

A fixture of the Uniontown entertainment scene for more than a century is making changes.

The State Theatre Center for the Arts will pare down its staff and reduce box office hours as part of an organizational restructuring to help ensure its long-term financial sustainability, the Greater Uniontown Heritage Consortium, which owns and operates the theater, announced Monday.

The theater’s five-employee staff was condensed to two full-time employees — general director John Wagner and Chaz Berkshire as operations manager.

Megan Clark, president of the theater’s board of directors, said the theater hopes to be able to re-expand down the road when it is able. Looking at the financing over the past few years, the board realized it needed to take steps to keep the theater viable long-term.

“Right now, it’s very difficult to be a nonprofit,” she said. “It’s even more difficult to be an arts nonprofit. There have been a lot of cuts when it comes to grants that are available, and the economy itself has shifted. People are prioritizing what is most important to them when it comes to their leisure activities, and so we’re moving with that changing tide.”

Wagner and Berkshire both have history with the theater.

Berkshire had served as the interim box officer manager and had previously been an intern. Wagner had also served the theater in various capacities over the years, most recently as artistic director for the Main Street Theatre Company, the State Theatre’s resident acting troupe. His mother, Christine Wagner, had previously served as the theater’s executive director in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

“When looking at the different candidates available for these positions, they both just checked so many boxes when it came to what we were looking for in order to take these next steps,” Clark said.

Wagner said he relished the opportunity to go to the place “where my own arts journey began,” including his first musical.

In his new role, Wagner plans to focus on building financial and operational stability and strengthening relationships with local organizations. One option is making the space available as a rental venue.

“I want the theater to be more than just a place where people come to see a show,” he said. “I want it to ultimately be considered almost like a gathering space for not just Uniontown, but this entire area. It’s a cornerstone in our community, and our area, and it’s one of the only places in our community area where the arts can exist right now.”

Berkshire said he’s excited to be a part of the restructuring.

“I’ve been familiar with the organization for years, so being able to return in this new leadership role sort of feels full circle,” he said. “But I love theater. I love the organization and the community that comes with it.”

The top immediate priority is establishing a strong foundation for the restructuring, which will help them identify needs for the future, Berkshire said.

On Thursday, the theater is participating in Fayette Gives, which raises donations for local nonprofits. Berkshire said proceeds will go into the theater’s building fund for projects such as roofing and plaster repairs.

The State Theatre is also reducing the number of hours the box office operates. Previously running from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, it will now be open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The box office will still open three hours before curtain.

More customers have been buying their tickets through the website, Clark said. In many cases, they aren’t even getting tickets mailed to them, instead using QR codes at the doors.

“Condensing down those public facing hours will allow both John and Chaz to focus on some of the other projects that we might be working on, whether it’s grants or doing any sort of marketing or trainings,” Clark said.

The theater’s website will also be revamped to make it more mobile-friendly. At the same time, it will become more user-friendly, Clark said, making it easier to find details like the theater’s bag policy and adding more information about attractions in the Uniontown area.

“We want to be able to highlight some of those locally owned restaurants and some of those other businesses, so that if somebody is coming here and they want to make it a day, or if they want to make it a nice little evening out, they know what’s available to them,” she said.

Clark said the changes are meant to ensure the theater can continue to maintain the connection it’s built with the public over the past 100 years.

It opened in 1922, hosting silent movies, vaudeville shows and big-band performances. After shifting primarily to movies, it shut down in the 1970s, re-opening as a music venue playing host to country legends like Johnny Cash.

The Greater Uniontown Heritage Consortium purchased the theater in 1988, hosting local and national theater productions and eventually reintroducing a classic film series.

“We’re looking at what we want to do going forward, what kind of plan we want to have to make sure that we can continue to remain this cornerstone, this home for so many people,” Clark said. “And that doesn’t come without growing pains.”