WYO Receives Strength of Sheridan Award

Part of downtown Sheridan for nearly 100 years, the WYO Performing Arts & Education Center – better known simply as the WYO Theater – is this year’s recipient of the Sheridan Chamber of Commerce Strength of Sheridan Award.

Adam Bunker, a member of the Chamber’s board of directors, talked about some of the reasons the WYO was nominated for the award.

The Strength of Sheridan Award is presented to a Chamber member business or organization that has a long and distinguished tenure in the community and that demonstrates consistent service, continually invests in the community and demonstrates sustainable quality performance.

Bunker noted that the WYO is a live performing venue in the heart of downtown Sheridan. The WYO not only offers a variety of live performances but provides space for student classes and rental space.

Originally built in 1923 as a vaudeville theater called the Lotus, the theater closed in March 1982 but was saved from demolition by a group of citizens who embarked on a fundraising campaign.

The doors of the renovated theater opened again in November 1989, and since then the theater has been remodeled and expanded, first into the adjoining Perkins Building, then into the former Hallmark location.

During the 2018-19 season, the WYO served nearly 21,000 patrons.