Entertainment after Ian: What to expect this season from Fort Myers, Naples arts venues
Southwest Florida’s entertainment industry took a hit last season, thanks to Hurricane Ian.
At least one venue closed for good. A few sat out the rest of 2022-23. And others saw a drop in attendance of 5-10 percent for musicals, concerts and more.
But there’s good news: After many tourists stayed away last season, they’re expected to return in bigger numbers for 2023-24. And all those people will be looking for entertainment.
That’s why many local arts leaders are hopeful and optimistic, especially as ticket sales and subscriptions start to pick up for next season's shows.
“Things are looking great,” says Greg Longenhagen, producing artistic director for Fort Myers’ Florida Repertory Theater. “There will be plenty of programming to lift the hearts and minds of our patrons.”
Farther south, Opera Naples is feeling just as optimistic. Two feet of storm surge badly damaged the opera company’s The Wang Center, says development director Kent Kyle. But now it’s expected to reopen soon for concerts and educational programs.
“We are coming back strong!” Kyle says. “New construction, new flooring, new office space: It looks better than ever.”
All across Southwest Florida, other arts and entertainment groups and organizations are likewise preparing for a potentially busy snowbird season. Here’s look at some of the area's top venues and arts groups and what you can expect from them in 2023-24:
Opera Naples
The Wang Opera Center ― home to Opera Naples ― stayed closed most of the 2022-23 season, thanks to Ian damage that included sewage backing up into the sinks, mold on seats, a bowed sprung wood floor and destroyed furniture and props.
“The Wang Center was indeed hit hard,” Kyle says. “We had two feet of storm surge that took out our administrative, storage, chorus room and theatre areas, including our 300-plus stadium seating.”
The professional opera company managed to keep the concerts going with shows staged elsewhere in Southwest Florida. Now The Wang is expected to reopen Oct. 1 with concerts, educational programs and other events, Kyle says.
And he’s betting audiences will come out to support them, too.
“We are optimistic that our community always embraces the arts,” he says. "Performing arts have the unique ability to bring us together, lift spirits and bring joy to our lives.”
New Phoenix Theatre closes, Players Circle Theater reopens
Hurricane Ian was the last straw for New Phoenix Theatre. After just four years, the community theater shut its doors permanently in April 2023.
Co-founder and president Brenda Kensler blamed her community theater’s closure mostly on COVID-19, although she says Hurricane Ian didn’t help. The theater stayed closed 1½ years at the start of the pandemic.
Yet the south Fort Myers theater space didn’t stay vacant for long this year: Players Circle Theater moved in just two months later.
The new space offers about twice the square footage Players Circle had at its former home, The Shell Factory in North Fort Myers, says co-founder Bob Cacioppo. Plus it’s in a great location on the busy McGregor Corridor.
The theater opens Oct. 17 with the comedy “Breaking Legs.”
“Players Circle Theater’s new home is just sensational,” Cacioppo says. “(It’s) going to be the most elegant and intimate theater in all of Southwest Florida.”
Florida Repertory Theatre
Murky, brackish stormwater breeched the downtown Fort Myers theater during Hurricane Ian, filling the theater’s offices, lobby and 6-foot-deep orchestra pit. Part of the roof was ripped off, too.
In all, the theater sustained more than $2 million in damages, according to Florida Rep.
Yet the show went on. And after a month or repairs, the first play of the season opened on Oct. 28, 2022 ― right on time.
A year later, there’s still a lot of work left to do at Florida Rep, which opens its 2023-24 season this month with the Rodgers & Hart music revue “Beguiled Again.”
In August 2023, the historic theater got a $750,000 state grant to further restore and repair the Florida Rep campus, including the roof, the main stage and the backstage area.
“There is a great amount of repair work needed that is not visible to most,” Longenhagen says.
Barbara B. Mann Performing Art Hall
Attendance was down slightly last season at the south Fort Myers hall – 9.4 percent – but general manager Scott Saxon says ticket sales have been “doing well” so far. That includes big shows next season such as the touring musicals “Jagged Little Pill,” “Hadestown” and “Mrs. Doubtfire” − plus the return of “Hamilton.”
“We are optimistic about this season,” Saxon says.
Another big change to expect: A $1.3 million renovation that includes an easier-to-access box office, a new stage floor and a bigger women’s bathroom on the first floor.
BIG ARTS
The Sanibel Island venue canceled the rest of its 2022-23 performing arts season after Hurricane Ian. In all, more than 200 concerts, art classes and other events were scrapped, says BIG ARTS executive director Lee Ellen Harder.
Now the venue is back for a full season of concerts, art shows and more in 2023-24, Harder says. And it feels good to be ready to entertain people again.
“It’s just been wonderful,” Harder says. “And we’re focused on moving forward.”
Hurricane Ian spared the Sanibel Island venue except for about $250,000 in damages, she says. But more than half of its employees’ homes were destroyed or significantly damaged.
That’s why BIG ARTS canceled its 2022-23 performing arts season except for a few arts exhibits and small, free events organized later. Plus many of the venue’s usual customers were also dealing with loss and damage, Harder says.
Leoma Lovegrove’s new gallery
After Ian badly damaged her Matlacha gallery, artist Leoma Lovegrove decided to move to a new gallery in downtown Fort Myers. It's being renovated and could open by early 2024, she says – and possibly sooner.
Lovegrove signed the five-year lease in April for the 2,800-square-foot storefront on Dean Street ― more than three times the size of her old, 800-square-foot gallery.
Meanwhile, she's kept her Matlacha gallery open for four hours a day, five days a week – despite flooding damage that left the gallery gutted and without electricity or running water.
“We are down to sticks,” Lovegrove says, “but the art shows well on the bare walls. And naturally, the public has been very supportive.”
The idea is to keep her staff employed, she says. The Matlacha gallery will shut down as soon as the Fort Myers one opens.
Gulfshore Playhouse
The downtown Naples theater company escaped the worst of Hurricane Ian, thanks to its home – The Norris Community Center – being situated on a built-up lot.
The Equity theater house reopened Sept. 15 with its annual New Works Festival. Meanwhile, work continues on its next home: A two-floor, $72 million theater building at the corner of Goodlette-Frank Road South and First Avenue South. That’s set to open the company’s 2024-25 season next fall.
The Baker Theater and Education Center’s main stage will seat 368. It’s rehearsal theater will have 125 seats and also can be used for productions.
FastTrax Entertainment
Hurricane Ian tore through the south Fort Myers amusement park and didn't leave much worth salvaging. The damage was so bad, FastTrax’s owners decided to start over again with an all-new facility elsewhere in Fort Myers.
Expected to open by the end of 2024, the 62,000-square-foot facility will feature duckpin bowling lanes, a videogame arcade and electric go-karts on a three-level go-kart track.
“This is going to be a brand-new, beautiful build from the ground up,” said Mike Cannington, marketing director for FastTrax owners Bowling Management Associates, in August.
There are no plans to reopen the old FastTrax location, Cannington said.
MangoMania
Hurricane Ian devastated much of Pine Island, but organizers still managed to hold the popular MangoMania festival in July 2023.
“This year, MangoMania is more important than ever,” said Cynthia Welch, executive administrator for the fest’s organizer, the Greater Pine Island Chamber of Commerce, in July. “Pine Islanders have worked awfully hard for the last nine months to get us on our feet after Hurricane Ian.”
Attendees apparently agreed: Attendance shot up 50 percent to an estimated 1,500 people, Welch says.
“More people than ever came out to support our island businesses, which is the main objective of our festival,” Welch says now. “As we recover from the storm, our farmers and businesses appreciate the heartwarming support from the many who came out.”
MangoMania will no doubt return in 2024. Meanwhile, there’s still a lot of work to do on Pine Island.
“Clean up, repair and in many cases rebuilding has been our focus for the past year,” Welch says. “And we are proud to say that many of our businesses have been able to reopen.
"At this time, there are many stores in Matlacha and on Pine Island that are open for business, looking forward to showing their progress to all who would like to visit."
Artis-Naples
Ticket sales started out slow in the 2022-23 season after Ian, but they picked up as the season progressed, says CEO and president Kathleen van Bergen.
Now the Naples arts venue − which van Bergen says didn’t see any significant damage from Ian − is preparing a new season that includes touring Broadway musicals “Funny Girl,” “SIX” and “Tina: The Tina Turner Musical.”
“Our team has been hard at work preparing another compelling assortment of visual and performing arts offerings,” van Bergen says. “And we have exciting plans in store, including Alexander Shelley’s first performances as artistic and music director designate.”
Ticket sales are already improving over this time last year, she says. She didn't provide specific numbers.
“We have seen a remarkably warm response to our announced programming from our patrons, with current sales significantly stronger than last season’s pre-Ian sales,” van Bergen says. “And our patrons’ optimism and enthusiasm fuel our determination to make this coming season truly exceptional.”
— Charles Runnells is an arts and entertainment reporter for The News-Press and the Naples Daily News. To reach him, call 239-335-0368 (for tickets to shows, call the venue) or email him at crunnells@gannett.com. Follow or message him on social media: Facebook (facebook.com/charles.runnells.7), X (formerly Twitter) (@charlesrunnells), Threads (@crunnells1) and Instagram (@crunnells1).
This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Entertainment in Fort Myers, Naples after Ian: What to expect
