Bull Shoals Theatre of the Art

The history of the present Bull Shoals Theater of the Arts started in 1999 with a building that had sat vacant for almost twelve years and a handful of community benefactors who had a vision to give something back to the community.  That group’s mission was to build the community’s character and excellence through the “arts”. Those benefactors then worked to acquire and renovate the property. So starting in 1999 past Mayor Loren Thompson, Ronald "Ron" Richter, and other concerned Bull Shoals residents looked for a way to acquire and finance the renovations to the building.  In that search for funds, their paths crossed with Robert and Corrine Frick, the developers of the Deerfield subdivision in Bull Shoals.  In June of 1999 Robert and Corrine Frick purchased the building and the land and offered it to the community on a twenty-year, no-cost, lease basis if a group could be formed to renovate and operate the theater on a non-profit basis.  Subsequently the IRS 501 C 3 corporation “Bull Shoals Theater of the Arts, Inc.” and the Governing Board that the theater presently operates under was formed. The Bull Shoals Theater of the Arts is a non-profit corporation organized for the purpose of providing a professional environment for the Performing Arts and to establish a live Entertainment Center for the education and pleasure of the citizens of the mid-south area of the country. The mission is to build community character and excellence through the Arts. All proceeds from the operations of the Bull Shoals Theater of the Arts shall be disbursed only in direct support of the purpose of the corporation and to insure its continued existence and growth.