ENTERTAINMENT

Love of historic theater keeps spirits there

Paula Hendrickson Register Star Media
The Coronado Performing Arts Center, 314 N. Main St., Rockford. Marty Mangas, Friends of the Coronado board member and tour guide, said paranormal groups have documented several ghosts at the theater.

Willard Van Matre built the Coronado Theatre in 1927, complete with an apartment for his wife, Irma, and himself. They loved it so much they’ve never left.

Marty Mangas, Friends of the Coronado board member and tour guide, said paranormal groups have documented several ghosts at the theater, but the Van Matres, Louis St. Pierre, a manager, and Miss Kileen, a secretary, are the core spirits watching over the historic theater.

They can move freely about, but spirit communicator Mark Dorsett said each has a favorite area.

“Mr. Van Matre spends a lot of time in the lobby, and also the theater itself,” said Dorsett. “As silly as this sounds, even now he’s making sure no one brings food or candy into the theater.”

If you ever go on a tour of the Coronado, you might even see Willard yourself.

“We had about 20 people standing on stage (for a tour). I saw Mr. Van Matre walking across the balcony and heard a collective gasp,” said Dorsett. “They all described him as a shadow about as tall as a person floating across the balcony.”

Irma keeps a protective eye on her apartment. On many tours, she’s asked Dorsett to tell guests not to touch her belongings. Kileen prefers her office and the mezzanine. St. Pierre is usually backstage.

“He’s a fun guy,” said Dorsett of St. Pierre. “He’s a bit of a prankster. He likes to mess with the stagehands. He’ll move pencils, even the ghost light they leave on stage.”

Mangas said she’s not very receptive to spirits, but has had some spooky experiences.

“Three different times I’ve smelled the Evening in Paris perfume Miss Kileen wears. It comes on very quickly, and very strong, then goes away just as quickly,” she said.

Before the theater’s renovation, Mangas said Marshall Blomberg, a longtime maintenance man, would often return to find his tools had been rearranged.

“A paranormal group came in with new devices. They said you could actually talk to the ghosts and they would respond,” said Mangas.

The investigators tried communicating with spirits for several minutes, with no response.

“Marshall went up and said, ‘My tools were disarranged and the light and radio were on. Did you do that?’ He walked back to his seat and there was the biggest, clearest ‘Yes’ you could imagine. It startled us all.”

Mangas said Blomberg felt a presence when closing the theater after a paranormal tour a couple years ago. He didn’t see anything, but took a photo with his cellphone. The photo — on display at the theater — revealed a figure of a woman seated in aisle one. After returning home, Blomberg still felt the presence and took a photo that showed a woman’s face over his couch.

Dorsett said he’s encountered other spirits at the theater, including two people who died suddenly whom Dorsett says he helped cross over, and a bully who occupied the men’s lounge until Dorsett told him to leave.

Mangas said a lady in white, a man in a bowler hat, and a ghost dog have also been spotted.

Dorsett’s most memorable experience at the Coronado, however, happened during a paranormal tour.

“One of the women who worked in what was Kileen’s office was going to give people a view into the office. Kileen is very territorial. She found me on the main floor and manifested solid, like a physical being, looking very sternly at me, telling me they were going to go into her office and she did not approve,” said Dorsett. “I was on my way somewhere else, and she didn’t like that I kind of ignored her. The next thing I know, I reeked of Evening in Paris perfume. For the rest of the night anyone within 20 feet of me could smell it.”

Mangas said the Coronado’s ghosts are benevolent. Dorsett agrees, adding that they enjoy putting on a show.

“All four of them know they’re no longer physically alive,” he said. “They stay at the theater because they love it. They look at it as being as close to heaven as they need — at least for now.”