PROSPECTOR THEATER

Prospector Theater is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit cinema located at 25 Prospect Street in downtown Ridgefield, Connecticut. The theater is dedicated to improving quality of life for people with disabilities through meaningful employment, with approximately 75% of staff self-identifying with a disability.

The Prospector screens first-run films in a premium theater environment. Employees, known as Prospects, provide full-service hospitality. The theater has sold over 1,000,000 tickets and paid more than $35 million in total payroll since opening.

Founded in 2014 by Valerie Jensen, the theater occupies the footprint of the old Ridgefield Playhouse, a building originally constructed in 1939 that served as a single-screen movie theater for forty years and then a bank for another forty. Since opening, the Prospector has employed 335+ Prospects.