Buxton Center for Bainbridge Performing Arts opens following $18M refresh

BAINBRIDGE ISLAND – Final touches of paint find their homes, a vacuum whirs, clearing away dust, last bits of labor wrap up, the culmination of about two years of construction. A dramatic, $18 million refresh of the Bainbridge Performing Arts space in Winslow has drawn to a close, and the renewed home for the arts is now ready for use. The organization broke ground on the Buxton Center for Bainbridge Performing Arts in October 2021, and now it’s ready to show off the new community space.

The building now features a massive glass façade that sunlight streams through on sunny days, a large new lobby area with a refreshments counter, a grand staircase, an elevator and a balcony, a new studio theater and a refreshed main theater with a new, more roomy seating arrangement. The building also has a new HVAC system, a solar array and new office spaces.

Said Elizabeth Allum, BPA’s incoming executive director: “The heart and soul and energy that is poured into the work that takes place here is the same, and now we just have a space that reflects the nature of that work and the beauty of that work. It’s really, really exciting.”

A row of seats in the main theater was removed to make things more comfortable for patrons. The building now has a sensory access room where those who need an adjusted experience with different lighting or sound can still experience what’s happening on the main stage. Backstage, there’s refreshed spaces for performers, including the additions of more restrooms and even a shower.

“If you play Shrek, you don’t want to go home green,” said Matt Longmire, communication and development coordinator for the organization.

The opening is a triumphant return for BPA, which scaled back during the pandemic, shifted to podcasting and then to hosting performances at Bainbridge Cinemas while the renovations took place.

“We had our first rehearsal in here the other day, and the actors came in, just in tears,” Longmire said. “This place has been closed for three-and-a-half years.”

The building is named for Bainbridge Island’s own Frank Buxton, a veteran actor, writer and participant in Kitsap’s performing arts scene who died in 2018 and left a large bequest for BPA that kickstarted fundraising for the renovation project, Longmire said. About $100,000 is left to fundraise to finalize the project, he added.

Buxton was a founding member of The Edge Improv comedy group, and appropriately, the group will put on the first ticketed performance at the new center on Oct. 7. Then on Oct. 12, BPA will start a run of the musical “The Prom,” the building’s first mainstage show after reopening.

As the building reopens, Allum, who has worked as BPA’s director of education, is taking over as executive director as longtime executive director Dominique Cantwell departs the organization. Cantwell has helmed the organization since 2010.

“For the young people in this community, for people of all ages in this community, whatever stage they’re at in their journey of growth in this creative world, I think having access to this space is incredible,” Allum said. “This is something that we really, really feel strongly about. We want everyone to be able to see a space for themselves in this building, whether that’s on the stage, in the audience, volunteering, teaching. This is a community space and we really, truly want that message to be loud and clear. This isn’t just about what BPA does, what we produce and what we put on, but this is us opening our doors to the community for them to see what’s possible for them here.”

Longmire noted that with its new facility, BPA is still a community theater. Ticket prices aren’t changing, and the organization isn’t shifting its model.

“We are the same BPA at heart,” he said, “with a whole new building.”

This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: Refreshed Bainbridge Performing Arts center reopens after $18M project