Bucks
Washington House and Sellersville Theater
Dear Friends,
Good morning. You faithful readers constantly give us leads for columns. The other week, Gregory Grim, a Perkasie lawyer, told me about a most unusual New Year’s Eve celebration in Sellersville, four weeks ago. Can you imagine that at midnight, December 31, an illuminated ball descended 150 feet to the cheers of 2,000 merrymakers, standing in the middle of the streets…of Sellersville?
Who could pull off a stunt like that, Mighty Betsy and I wondered? It turned out that William Quigley and his wife, Elayne Brick, put Sellersville in the news. They are the proprietors of the Washington House and Sellersville Theater. It’s the second year that the couple has stopped traffic in the center of town.
Their friend, Ted Harrison of East Coast Hoist, supplied the “tower.” They asked John Adams of Creative Forge, whether he could make a six feet diameter ball? He could and did. The team wrapped the ball in Christmas lights and Jason Fluck supplied the smoke and snow machine.
Voila!
Just like New Year’s Eve on Time Square, the ball dropped to the roar of the crowd. A band marched out of the Sellersville Theater playing “When the Saints Go Marching In,” and the street party began.
“We gave away free hot chocolate
and pretzels,” Quigley began. “There was nothing to sell after
MB and I sat with Quigley to learn more about their culinary and theatrical skills. He and Brick bought the Washington House in 1985. According to legend, the Washington House opened for business in 1742 as a stagecoach stop between Philadelphia and Bethlehem.
Today, it offers excellent food and
a 10 station historical tour of the building showing pictures and the history
of Sellersville. The date on the handsome bar reads,
Quigley entered the food business at age 18. He’s been a chef in Paris, France and Philadelphia. In 2001, Quigley and Brick bought the adjacent Sellersville Theater where movies once were shown. After six months of research, they concluded that live music would be the best attraction. Quigley told me that the 300-seat theater runs four or five live shows every weekend.
The Kingston Trio, one of my favorites, played there last year. The Harry James and Benny Goodman bands will appear this year. There’s a website for more info about shows and prices www.st94.com Tickets range from $10 to $45.
I asked him about show biz.
“The margins are thin,” Quigley replied. “We only have 300 seats [in the theater]. It’s one thing to have a 2,000-seat theater where you can sell tickets at $50 each. But it’s another when you only have 300 seats at $50 each. Finding the right shows is difficult,” he added. “Reaching the right people with the right music is critical.”
Fifteen employees and 50 to 60 volunteers make the Sellersville Theater work. The theater boasts of 1,200 members who pay an annual $95 fee. Its brochure shows a photo of its annual party with 900 in attendance. Quigley and Brick are building a $400,000 new lobby for the Sellersville Theater, which should be ready May 1. But the shows continue during the construction.
Last Christmas, as a community good will gesture, the theater showed a free movie of an old favorite, “A Wonderful Life.” And the staff sang Christmas carols. “We passed the hat for FISH (Fellowship in Serving Humanity) and raised $550,” Quigley told me.
I asked him about New Year’s Eve in December 2008. Where will you put them if more than 2,000 show up? “I don’t know,” Quigley laughed. “But I know the people will come.”
We’ll just have to stay tuned.
Sincerely,
Charles Meredith