A $500,000 anonymous donation has Globe Theatre’s public fundraising campaign off to a strong start.

The historic building in downtown Regina is in the midst of a large-scale $30 million renovation project that will see the building be gutted and completely rebuilt on the inside.

After receiving funding from various levels of government, Globe Theatre still needed to raise $12 million of its own before the project was completely covered financially.

Currently about $6 million has been raised.

The anonymous donor also said they would match donations up to the first $500,000.

“It’s a nice way to get the campaign going early. So when someone says ‘I’m going to donate $100 or $500 or $1,000,’ it doubles it right away. It allows that first million-dollar threshold to be passed really quickly,” Trevor Boquist, chair of the Globe Reimagine Campaign said.

The theatre renovation is also expected to significantly help with the revitalization of Scarth Street and Reginas downtown core.

Once the project has been completed the new theatre will be larger and feature a trap room below the stage along with a catwalk above.

The newly renovated theatre is expected to be open by December of 2023.