For nearly 60 years, the Playmill Theatre in West Yellowstone, Montana has been making a name for itself with immersive family-friendly theatrical performances. The theatre has outgrown its current location, a repurposed 120 year old bingo hall and pharmacy, resulting in the owners decision to build a new purpose-built theatre in Island Park, Idaho.

The design brief set forth by the owners not only outlined a large theatre with additional adjacent spaces for a gift shop, restaurant, ice cream bar, and housing for all of the actors, but also specified that the project was to be themed as an old saw mill, with theming and design on par with world-class theme parks.

The resulting design is based on a fictitious narrative created to give life to the space and guide the design of the building's various intermingled spaces. In brief, the story begins with the building of a trading post in the mid-1800's which catered to the pioneering settlers in the area. A saw mill was eventually built on the site to cater to the growing needs for construction timbers, and as the community grew, and became more affluent, a restaurant/saloon was opened. The open area between the buildings was later enclosed by the community to create a gathering place and dance hall.

This story dictates the narrative of the building itself, with the gift shop, restaurant, and theatre each occupying a distinct portion of the building designed to resemble separate structures built decades apart from each other. The story's dance hall functions as the voluminous main entrance and lobby for the building.

The owners readily accepted the design of the new building and greatly appreciated the noted attention to detail and thorough theming of each distinct space.

Intending to break ground in summer of 2020, the project was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic as funding for theaters and restaurants dried up. The owner's remain tied to the design of the building and are currently acquiring new funding with the intent to begin building in the next few years.