"Dreams that you dare to dream really do come true." This famous line from the song Over the Rainbow (The Wizard of Oz) was the theme for the day at the Ribbon Cutting ceremony for the Chemainus Theatre Festival Production Centre and the new Best Western Chemainus Festival Inn.

Just over two years ago, the Chemainus Theatre Festival announced plans to build a 75 suite strata hotel and a 16,000 square foot production and administration centre, on the same property. The new site is located at Henry & Chemainus Road.

On June 17th, the dream has come true, with a Community Open House celebration of the new facilities. The theatre company also celebrated their Gala opening of The Wizard of Oz with original music and lyrics from the 1939 MGM movie. This two-hour extravaganza is the most expensive production that the theatre company has produced since its opening in 1993, with production costs around ¼ of a million.