This story appears in the April 2025 issue of Utah Business. Subscribe.
Since first opening its doors in 1990, the Hale Center Theater in Orem has produced thousands of shows — but with just 305 seats available, its growth has been limited. Now, it will serve as storage space for The Ruth and Nathan Hale Theater (The Ruth) in Pleasant Grove.
This new location boasts more than triple the seating capacity between two stages. Jeff Fisher, development director of the theater, expects ticket sales to double — and the theater is expected to have a huge economic impact on the area.
A proprietary study commissioned by the Hale Center Foundation for the Arts and Education and completed by LRB Public Finance Advisors projects that, from 2023-2030, The Ruth will have a total economic impact of over $714 million. In 2025 alone, the economic impact is projected to be $81.4 million. Ticket sales, concessions and classes are part of that number, but it also includes the money theater patrons will spend on retail, hotels, and restaurants in the surrounding area; wages for theater employees; and more.
“A rising tide lifts all boats.”
— Ruth Hale
“[The theater] is a catalyst in the community that draws people out of their homes,” Fisher explains. “They end up gassing up their cars, grabbing groceries, eating out, maybe catching some retail, picking something up.”
This is part of the “multiplier effect,” where one money-spending event — such as the investment to build The Ruth, leads to another — locals buying tickets to shows or getting dinner before or after a performance. In another example, when more employees are hired to staff the theater, they’ll likely visit local establishments to spend their earnings. All of these spent dollars will boost the economy.
In addition to the economic impact, The Ruth will have a direct fiscal impact through direct taxation and revenues created for local, regional and state governments. The taxable revenue generated by The Ruth and surrounding businesses is projected to have a total fiscal impact of $42 million from 2023-2030, according to the aforementioned study. For 2025, the projected total fiscal impact is $4.7 million. By 2030, that number is expected to hit $7.5 million.
So, what about Orem? Orem City Public Information Officer Pete Wolfley admits the theater’s move is a cultural loss, but he’s taking an optimistic view. Orem is still home to the SCERA Center for the Arts, which puts on a variety of shows and provides arts education. With the Hale Center Theater no longer part of Orem, Wolfley says more of the city’s Cultural Arts & Recreation Enrichment tax will go to supporting the SCERA, expanding programming and enhancing show quality.
“What’s good for Pleasant Grove is also good for Orem,” Wolfley says. The benefits of The Ruth may extend throughout Utah County and even the entire state of Utah, according to the LRB Public Finance Advisors report. By 2030, the state is projected to receive over $4.5 million each year in fiscal impact in relation to the theater, as well as benefit from job creation and arts-related education for students.
According to Fisher, Ruth Hale herself was often fond of saying, “A rising tide lifts all boats.”