An 11th-hour upset in the Aviva Community Fund semifinals means Western Canada Theatre will seek other methods of paying for upgrades to the Pavilion Theatre.

There were 32 organizations eligible for the semifinals, but only 10 advanced. The Pavilion came in 11th when the contest closed Dec. 12, said associate producer Heather Cant.

The standings were made public earlier this week.

"It was kind of tragic," she said Wednesday.

Missing out on the $100,000 from the insurance company's competition-based program is a blow to the theatre company, which was counting on the money to complete extensive renovations to the theatre, including cosmetic upgrades and an overhaul of the sound, lighting and heating and cooling systems.

Even the $5,000 awarded each organization that made it into the semifinals would have been nice, said Cant.

So the theatre company is opting to proceed with the upgrades without relying on contests like Aviva. Cant said theatre staff will sit down in the new year and drum up ideas on how to do that.

She said the competition attracted a lot of community attention, so maybe WCT can look at Kamloops businesses for help, she said.

"My hope is, this time next year, we won't need to take part in Aviva," said Cant. "We will figure out another way to get the money."