Electric City's eclectic vintage theater brings together creators, dancers, gamers and more

KAUKAUNA – On a trip through downtown Kaukauna, it's easy to pass the low-profile building at 151 E. Second St.

There's little to distinguish it from the other attached brick structures, except a small red lightning bolt-shaped sign hanging above the door that reads "Vaudette."

Beyond the unassuming exterior, it's home base for a variety of eclectic events that draw a different crowd every day.

The Vaudette is the passion project and full-time job of Kaukauna native Greg Vande Hey. The "art and music space," as it's called on its Facebook page, hosts everything from Latin dance lessons to heavy metal concerts, open mic nights to pool tournaments, and even video game competitions.

"I just really want to be and do something interesting," Vande Hey said. "We're here to interact, to do stuff together."

The Vaudette officially opened one year ago, in August. Since then, the crowds attending events at the venue have grown, primarily through word of mouth.

To some, it's considered a bit of a hidden gem. John Brogan, the founder of the open mic writers' group Calling All Writers which graced the Vaudette periodically but will begin meeting monthly in the fall, said it reminds him of venues he's seen in larger cities.

"Boy, when there’s a concert there or when it’s full, it feels like you are in a place which is not Wisconsin," Brogan said. "It feels cool and fun and just hype."

Vaudette saw many incarnations, including movie theater and home of Freemasons

Vande Hey bought the building in 2015. He was living in New York City at time, where he first moved in 1999, and initially envisioned making it an artist co-op, which he could rent out to people for use while still living in New York. But a year later, Vande Hey and his family moved back to his hometown, and his vision for the space changed.

The Vaudette came by its name because it's the original location of the Vaudette Theatre, where Kaukauna residents went to watch movies from 1912 to 1938.

In 1938, the theater was moved down the road to 157 E. Second St., where it remained until that building became a St. Vincent de Paul thrift store in the '70s. The original building was then bought by the Freemasons, who used it until the '80s.

It was part of a music shop in the '90s for a bit, before it was left abandoned, Vande Hey said. The building sat, largely forgotten, for about 20 years before Vande Hey purchased it.

"Hardly anybody knew this existed. I mean, you talk to people, it's like the one building they never even knew about," Vande Hey said. "From the outside, it kind of just blends in."

Vande Hey's former neighbor, Tom McGinnis, 88, has lived in Kaukauna his whole life. McGinnis said he can remember going to the old Vaudette Theater once or twice with his older brother and sister when he was around four years old.

"There was a huge red velvet drape hanging in the doorway," McGinnis recalled.

While McGinnis said he hasn't seen the theater in person since Vande Hey purchased it, he was glad to learn Vande Hey — his old newspaper delivery boy — was refurbishing the building to bring back some of its old charm.

"I think it's a neat idea. It was a structurally sound building, and it should have had somebody like Greg taking care of it," McGinnis said.

Pandemic, supply chain issues tried to hamper development, but restoration marched on

Vande Hey obtained his building permit in March of 2020. Almost immediately after, the world shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and Vande Hey was forced to put the Vaudette's plans on hold. When he was finally able to get moving with construction, Vande Hey said he faced further delays, due to supply chain issues.

"All that stuff took forever, longer than I ever would have imagined," he said. "Really, the construction, I didn't finish until basically last year."

Before the pandemic, and long before Vande Hey had finished renovating, he started opening the building on Monday nights for open jams. While at the time there were "piles of projects everywhere," Vande Hey recalled, it grew enough of a following of musicians that Vande Hey's Monday night jams are now his busiest days.

Vande Hey has tried to restore much of the venue to how it looked when it was the old Vaudette Theatre. He peeled away layers to reveal the original wood ceiling, and found vintage chandeliers that closely resemble those in images of the old theater.

The space isn't enormous — at maximum capacity it holds 130 people. Booths line the walls, and at the far end of the house is a small stage. There is a small bar around the corner from the hallway entrance. A pool table sits in the middle of the floor — which Vande Hey moves for certain events, like weekly dance classes.

Fox Valley Latin Dancers, a social dance group, meets at the Vaudette every Thursday for a class followed by social dancing, said Melissa Kahl, founder of the group's private Facebook group. They shuffle through different forms of dance, including salsa, tango, bachata and kizomba, an African tango.

While not exactly a traditional scene for dancing, the Vaudette has some features that made it great for the dancers, including a wood floor and audio equipment, Kahl said.

"It's a little bit of an experimental space," she said. "It's almost like having a private party, because there aren't a lot of people coming in off the street. I think that makes people feel comfortable."

The space has also hosts more niche gatherings — including a few Pokémon Go tournaments.

Vande Hey said his kids got into the video game — which is played on a smartphone and uses the camera to create augmented reality, showing the virtual Pokémon creatures standing amid a player's real life surroundings — in 2016, just after they had moved back to Kaukauna from New York. He said he spent a lot of time driving them around to catch Pokémon, and eventually got involved himself and learned about a tournament circuit. Vande Hey then decided to create his own in-person gathering for Pokémon Go tournaments, at the Vaudette.

Among those to attend, including Vande Hey and his three kids, was Chris Reisner, an esports YouTuber and internationally ranked Pokémon Go player.

Reisner, who lives in the Milwaukee area, said the Vaudette's tournaments earlier this year were some of the largest community-run Pokémon Go events he'd been to.

"I really like the vibe. There’s something kind of nostalgic, especially post-COVID ... just kind of the nature of a space where community members can get together and play Pokémon. People seemed really happy to be there," Reisner said.

Future holds bar renovation, expanded offerings including silent films, Dungeons & Dragons gatherings

Vande Hey has no employees currently. He runs everything himself, from event planning to bar tending — and participates in all the activities, which differ every night of the week. He's put together a Vaudette softball team, learned how to swing dance and salsa, hosted darts and pool tournaments and more.

The Vaudette is open Monday through Saturday, 6 p.m. until the crowd empties out, Vande Hey said.

Vande Hey primarily shares about upcoming events on Facebook and Google Calendar. But people not planning to participate in activities can step in to check out the space and buy a drink most nights. When there's no open jams or dance classes using the audio system, patrons can sing karaoke on a TV screen with microphones. It's particularly popular on Tuesdays, Vande Hey said.

"We call it self-serve-aoke," Vande Hey said.

The Vaudette just received its liquor license in July, so Vande Hey is in the process of renovating the bar setup from a cooler stocked with beer and wine to a full bar with a sink and ice machine.

Most events at the Vaudette, except some concerts, are free, with patrons encouraged to buy a drink or donate an equivalent of about $5, Vande Hey said.

With one year of full operations under his belt, Vande Hey has a lot of plans for the future. He said he wants to host more silent film screenings, more weekend concerts, an NFL Xbox tournament, Dungeons & Dragons gatherings, a Halloween costume party and more.

“It’s a really friendly and inviting space ... just a great place to see a lot of varied programming and hang out with a bunch of interesting, artistic people who are just trying to push forward the arts movement in northeast Wisconsin," Brogan said.

Contact Kelli Arseneau at 920-213-3721 or karseneau@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @ArseneauKelli.

This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: Kaukauna's Vaudette is Wisconsin's slice of New York City arts culture