News vans swarmed into the snow-covered parking lot. The television cameras focused on the gathering crowd. While most Americans watched the 1997 Academy Awards broadcast, 870 local residents crammed into the Fargo Theatre, clad in flannel shirts, furry hats, and hooded parkas, to celebrate the Oscar nomination for the movie “Fargo.” They danced to polka music. They munched on Scandinavian cuisine: lime Jell-O, pickled herring, and rommegrot. They even constructed an award figurine, made from a department store mannequin, which they dressed in long underwear and a stocking cap. After the town returned to normal, they plopped the dummy onto the seat of a white piano. He continues to stare downward from the balcony, scaring customers when they walk in the door. “He’s my best employee,” said Margie Bailly, executive director at the Fargo Theatre. “He never needs an employee evaluation. He never asks for a raise. He never gives me any trouble at all, and he usually dresses current for the season.”

Located in Fargo, the largest city in North Dakota, the Fargo Theatre has become the regional center for artistic cinema. It exhibits community plays, musical performances, and independent films. It hosts the Fargo Film Festival, which attracts directors and producers from around the world. A unique historical landmark, it connects multiple generations through their shared memories. Local artists squeeze into the auditorium, searching for inspiration, admiring the productions of their contemporaries. They come to escape from their normal lives. They come for the ultimate movie experience: the sense of watching life through different eyes.      One cold February night, a few brave people strolled through downtown Fargo. The snow blew in wavering sheets across the street. They stared at the neon lights, outdated hotels, and filthy bars. Then, they noticed a small theatre, with a glowing sign shaped like an inverted rocket. The billboard announced the current movie: “Pee Wee’s Big Adventure.”

 A small crowd gathered around a young man dressed in a gray suit and white platform shoes. According to Kevin Bauer, a high school student, as they “walked down the street, everyone shouted ‘Pee Wee!’ Then [my friend] started doing the dance, and he got this huge round of applause.”
      Along with showing independent films, the Fargo Theatre features contemporary favorites for the younger audience. “They show all these old classics,” said Bauer. “People are there because they really enjoy those movies.” After showing a community production of “The Sound of Music,” they follow with “Lantana,” starring Geoffrey Rush and Barbara Hershey. For 364 days of the year, they have foreign and independent movies, jazz and folk musicians, and local theatre performances, closing only for the Christmas holiday.
     Local artists travel into these animated worlds, hoping to discover some inspiration from the lives of the fictional characters. According to Dr. Richard Gilmore, a philosophy professor at Concordia College: “Films are like dreams. The sense of our dreams is that there is more going on than just our conscious activity. Movies are like that: You are gazing up, and this story unfolds, which is full of human meaning.” Film has replaced the novel as the main form of entertainment. People have discovered another source for poetic expression. “Movies operate like metaphors,” said Richard Gilmore. “They establish connections between images and ideas and people, with all sorts of methods, and direct your mind to see things in a different way.”
     The Fargo Theatre opened on March 15, 1926. It started with silent movies, stage plays, and operas, catering to the desires of the Roaring’ 20s. But until they installed talking picture equipment in 1927, vaudeville was the main attraction. Babe Ruth appeared in 1926, accompanied by a large bat and a baseball. Back when Western movies captured the imagination of America, they hosted Tom Mix, the silent screen cowboy, who rode into the theatre on his favorite horse.
     They showed Al Jonson’s “The Jazz Singer” on February 20, 1928, which began the transition to talking films. By 1948, the focus changed to cinema. It remained a popular attraction until the late 20th century, when competition became overwhelming, driving it toward bankruptcy. “We had some really scary times,” said Margie Bailly. “I remember when the auditorium flooded. My husband was playing bass on stage with all the electrical equipment turned on.” The American Theatre Organ Society formed a non-profit organization, The Fargo Theatre Management Corporation, which purchased the building and started remodeling it. On Monday, May 11, 1998, they started a $2.6 million restoration project. The Fargo Theatre has become the regional source for artistic cinema, showing everything from contemporary classics to international film. It hosted the first Fargo Film Festival in 2001, which featured independent movies from around the world.
     Located in the Midwest, among the conservative churches, traditional lifestyles, and peaceful neighborhoods, the Fargo Theatre connects the community with people from outside North Dakota. People march into the lobby and move backward to another period in history, such as the Great Depression and World War II. Through foreign, independent, and classic movies, they learn about rape, divorce, exotic cultures, prejudice, and domestic violence. They discover something new about the surrounding world. “The best way to get a sense of other people’s sensibilities—people of different countries, sexual orientations, genders, religions—is through film,” said Richard Gilmore. “The Fargo Theatre is the only venue in this area where people can go and do that.”