Famous Charlotte theater hurting after ‘unimaginable’ fire, seeks community support
A Charlotte theater that’s staged performances for 93 years is seeking community support after an “unimaginable” fire wrecked its auditorium on Queens Road in Myers Park.
“Our seats, flooring, ceiling, and most lighting and sound equipment are likely a total loss,” Theatre Charlotte leaders posted hours after Monday’s electrical fire. “We’ve been hit pretty hard by 2020, but physical damage to our physical home is something we simply could not have expected.”
Theatre Charlotte is the longest-running community theater in North Carolina, according to its leaders.
“This is as much my home as my real home,” Ron Law, executive director of the theater for 15 years, told Observer news partner WBTV. “This is heartbreaking.”
Law said he was scheduled to retire on Jan. 31. “This is sort of my exit,” he told the station. “And it’s also the exit of 2020, one last swift kick before the year is over. It’s pretty sad.”
Theatre Charlotte has been in the Queens Road building since 1941.
To restore the auditorium and replace fire-destroyed equipment, the theater has established “SAVE MY SEAT: The Theatre Charlotte Relief Fund.”
On Facebook, theater leaders posted that they met Wednesday with fire inspectors, restoration crews and theater professionals to begin a lengthy evaluation of the damage.
“The good news? We’ve been told that repair. is. possible,” according to the post.
The auditorium sustained far more loss than the $50,000 fire officials estimated, according to the theater.
That figure is “a gross understatement,” Chris Timmons, Theatre Charlotte associate artistic director, said in a media statement.
“As someone who knows the building and equipment better than anyone else, I can assure you that there was at least that much in damaged equipment inside the auditorium,” Timmons said in the statement.
“Not to mention HVAC replacement, structural and cosmetic repairs and cleaning and restoration throughout the building due to smoke and soot,” he said.
The fire department estimate has already hurt fundraising, according to Timmons.
“Several people have already commented to us that insurance should cover $50,000 worth of expenses,” he said in the statement. “Again, I can say with confidence that the total damages will far exceed that number.”
The fire department estimate doesn’t include such items as lighting and sound equipment “that is damaged beyond repair,” according to Timmons.
Charlotte Fire stands by damage estimate
Fire officials are sticking to their estimate, Charlotte Fire Battalion Chief Matthew Westover said in an email to The Charlotte Observer.
“The Charlotte Fire Department Fire Investigation Task Force will not be changing their estimate provided in the report,” Westover said. “We are confident in our process and stand by the information provided.”
In all fires, investigators base damage assessment “using tax values as the base value and their individual experiences of previous investigations,” according to Westover.
The fire damage estimates don’t include damage from “smoke, water, fire suppression, and damage from overhaul,” the chief said.
A claims adjuster from a fire victim’s insurance company is responsible for determining the actual total loss, Westover said, and that can take weeks or months.
Timmons agreed that an accurate total loss figure from the adjuster could take weeks.
What Timmons does know, he said, is that “$50,000 is not going to be enough to reopen Theatre Charlotte.”
In a post to the general community, he said: “We don’t know the full extent of the damage but we do know that we cannot rebuild without you.”
