{"id":2060,"date":"2026-04-03T06:00:15","date_gmt":"2026-04-03T06:00:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/savannahmadesimple.com\/Magazine\/?p=2060"},"modified":"2026-04-03T06:03:33","modified_gmt":"2026-04-03T06:03:33","slug":"the-long-way-back-to-the-lights","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/savannahmadesimple.com\/Magazine\/the-long-way-back-to-the-lights\/","title":{"rendered":"The Long Way Back to the Lights"},"content":{"rendered":"<style>.postcontent p {line-height: 150% !important;}<\/style>\n<div class=\"postcontent\">\n<h3 style=\"text-align:left\"><strong>The drive to Tybee has a way of loosening your shoulders.<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">Somewhere after the marsh opens up and, the city noise fades. You start thinking differently. Shoes feel optional. Time slows down. By the time you turn onto Van Horne Avenue, you are already in a different headspace.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">That is part of the point.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">For Evan Goetz, that feeling is not a weekend novelty. It is the daily commute.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">\u201cI don\u2019t mind driving the twenty five minutes to work,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s the most beautiful drive, in my opinion. That\u2019s why I love going to work every day.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">Goetz is the executive director of the Tybee Post Theater, a building that once sat dark and forgotten for more than half a century, and now hums with music, film, and community again. His path to that seat was not direct. It rarely is.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">\u201cI moved here originally for SCAD in 2011,\u201d he says. \u201cI thought I wanted to be an actor. I did some professional work, but I realized pretty quickly that it\u2019s hard to affect real change just as an actor on stage.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">Instead, he drifted toward arts administration, the behind the scenes work that keeps creative spaces alive.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">\u201cYou can really affect change that way,\u201d he says. \u201cThat\u2019s what pulled me in.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad_width1\">\n<div class=\"fl-lt ad_width2\">\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">After graduate school, Goetz worked across Savannah\u2019s arts ecosystem. Children\u2019s theater. Teaching at Armstrong. Managing auditoriums. Marketing for music and theater departments.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">Eventually, he left town, moving with his husband to Rock Hill, South Carolina, where he worked for a massive performing arts center tied to Broadway touring shows.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">\u201cI hated it,\u201d he says, without hesitation. \u201cThe corporate world didn\u2019t feel like I was affecting change.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">He left that job for city government, running arts programming and downtown events in Rock Hill.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">\u201cI loved it,\u201d he says. \u201cOutdoor festivals. Food truck events. Arts projects. It felt real.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"fl-rt ad_width2\">\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/savannahmadesimple.com\/Magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Way-Back-to-the-Lights-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" style=\"width:100%;\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<div class=\"clear\"><\/div>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">Then COVID hit. Government structures shifted. Roles changed. \u201cThey moved me to another department,\u201d he says. \u201cI didn\u2019t sign up for that.\u201d So they moved back to Savannah. Justin, his husband, took a job downtown with a church.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">Evan landed at the Tybee Post Theater in 2021, at a moment when the future of live performance still felt uncertain.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">\u201cWhen I started, we were still only showing movies at thirty five percent capacity,\u201d he says. \u201cI remember my first board meeting. They said, \u2018We want to open back up to full capacity.\u2019 And I said, \u2018Wait a second. Let\u2019s make sure people are ready.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">They listened. They polled audiences. They reopened carefully.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">\u201cIt worked,\u201d he says. \u201cWe opened in May with a Tom Petty tribute, and it was very successful.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">That moment marked a turning point. \u201cWhen I started, our budget was fairly low,\u201d Goetz says. \u201cBut in five years, we\u2019ve doubled it. We\u2019re nearing a million dollars a year now. I don\u2019t mind saying that on the record. That\u2019s a testament to the success.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">They added staff. Expanded programming. Grew the reach.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">At its core, the Tybee Post Theater is a presenting organization. It brings artists in. Hosts films. Curates experiences. But Goetz is clear about the philosophy behind it.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">\u201cIt doesn\u2019t matter what you believe politically, religiously, any of that,\u201d he says. \u201cWhen you walk through our doors, you\u2019re there for the same reason. A shared experience. To watch something great on our stage or screen.\u201d That word comes up again and again. Shared.<\/p>\n<p>  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/savannahmadesimple.com\/Magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Way-Back-to-the-Lights-3.jpg\" alt=\"\" style=\"width:100%;\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">\u201cThat\u2019s what we strive for,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s not just a show. It\u2019s an experience.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">The building itself knows something about patience. Built around 1930 as a movie theater for soldiers stationed nearby, it operated for only a few decades before closing in the early 1960s. Then it sat. Roof collapsed. Fires. Decay. Forgotten.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">\u201cIt was completely dark,\u201d Goetz says. \u201cFrom about 1962 until 2015. Nothing happening.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">When developers eyed the property for demolition and condos, a small group pushed back.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">\u201cThey said, \u2018We have to save this place,\u2019\u201d he says. \u201cThey had a dream of it being a community space.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">That dream took time. Fifteen years of organizing, fundraising, and persistence. \u201cIt took effort,\u201d Goetz says. \u201cA lot of drive.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">In 2015, the lights came back on. Today, the theater feels easy. That is deceptive. What you are experiencing is the result of careful stewardship.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">Goetz still steps on stage occasionally. A role in The Music Man. A turn in The Odd Couple. This year, he is directing. \u201cIt\u2019s nice to be on stage,\u201d he says. \u201cBut I realized pretty quickly I\u2019d rather focus on the administrative side.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">When asked what he would tell someone in Savannah who has never made the trip, his answer is immediate.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">\u201cTrust me,\u201d he says. \u201cCome out.\u201d Not for a single show. For the whole experience.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">\u201cYou\u2019re forty five seconds from the beach,\u201d he says. \u201cWatch the sunset. Have dinner. Come to the theater. Maybe you\u2019re in flip flops. Maybe you rent a golf cart.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">Tybee helps by staying itself. \u201cThey don\u2019t allow franchises,\u201d Goetz says. \u201cEverything is locally owned. The restaurants, the businesses, the people live there. It feels different.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">\u201cIt\u2019s all right there,\u201d he says. \u201cWalking distance. It becomes a full night.\u201d And that, more than anything, is the point.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">The Tybee Post Theater is not trying to compete with Savannah. It complements it. A small room. A preserved space. A place where strangers sit next to each other and leave having shared something.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">\u201cSupport it,\u201d Goetz says. \u201cIt\u2019s right here for us to enjoy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:left\">On Tybee, the lights are back on. The room is warm. The show is about to start. All you have to do is make the drive.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/savannahmadesimple.com\/Magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Way-Back-to-the-Lights-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" style=\"width:100%;\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"clear\"><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a style=\"width:100%;\" href=\"https:\/\/savannahmadesimple.com\/Subscribe.html\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/savannahmadesimple.com\/Magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/September_2025_Issue-1.webp\" alt=\"\" style=\"width:100%;\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<div id=\"authorbio\">\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad_width1\" style=\"padding:2%;box-shadow: 0 4px 8px 0 rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2), 0 6px 20px 0 rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.19);\">\n<h3>About The Author<\/h3>\n<div class=\"fl-lt ad_width6a\">\n<p style=\"margin-bottom:0;\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/savannahmadesimple.com\/Magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Brett.png\" alt=\"Brett\" style=\"width:100%;\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:center; margin-top:0;\">Brett Bigelow<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"fl-rt ad_width6b\">\n<p style=\"text-align:left;\">\n        <!--Bio Text will Go Here-->\n      <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"clear\"><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"clear\"><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The drive to Tybee has a way of loosening your shoulders. Somewhere after the marsh opens up and, the city noise fades. You start thinking differently. Shoes feel optional. Time slows down. By the time you turn onto Van Horne Avenue, you are already in a different headspace. That is part of the point. For [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2063,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[264,263,262,265,92,77],"class_list":["post-2060","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-georgia","tag-savannah-ga","tag-savannah-tourism","tag-visit-savannah","tag-savannah","tag-savannah-georgia"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/savannahmadesimple.com\/Magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2060","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/savannahmadesimple.com\/Magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/savannahmadesimple.com\/Magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/savannahmadesimple.com\/Magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/savannahmadesimple.com\/Magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2060"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/savannahmadesimple.com\/Magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2060\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2112,"href":"https:\/\/savannahmadesimple.com\/Magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2060\/revisions\/2112"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/savannahmadesimple.com\/Magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2063"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/savannahmadesimple.com\/Magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2060"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/savannahmadesimple.com\/Magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2060"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/savannahmadesimple.com\/Magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2060"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}