After three years of struggling to rebound from a fire, one of Halifax’s most notable theatre companies is ready to hit the stage — both outdoors and in.
“You know it’s amazing as in any emergency, or anytime a tragedy happens, you pull yourself together and say okay what are we going to do now?” said Elizabeth Murphy, one of the founders and current co-artistic director of Shakespeare by the Sea.
Just before their June 2014 theatre season was about to start, Murphy got a call from the alarm company hooked up to the building.
At first she was convinced it may have been something minor, she says the company has had false alarms before.
READ MORE: Shakespeare by the Sea to return indoors for rainy days
However, when she started travelling towards the Park Place Theatre, that’s when she realized the problem was much more serious than a minor alarm infraction.
“I got here just as the firemen were on the roof with an axe going through, making a hole in it so they could put water into the theater and it was literally the day before we were starting rehearsal,” Murphy said.
She said she felt helpless as she stood with another member of the company, Tom Smith and watched smoke billow out of their beloved theatre.
“I felt my life was over. We both stood there and thought, oh my goodness gracious, what are we going to do?”
But like any professional artistic team, the shows went on.
The impact of not having an indoor space to perform in any longer took a toll on their business.
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“We lost 13 shows last year, 13 shows to rain,” Murphy said.
The company has two performance locations, both geared around weather.
Indoor shows are held at the Park Place Theatre and outdoor shows are held in the Cambridge Battery.
Poor weather meant the loss of several shows throughout each season for the past three years.
“Having to cancel the shows is the worst, you never want to disappoint people, you don’t want to come to the park and then not get to be able to see the play.” said Jade Douris, one Shakespeare by the Sea’s actors.
READ MORE: Suspicious fire at Shakespeare by the Sea building
Now, after years of rebuilding, Park Place Theatre is ready for action.
“It’s really great because it means that we never have to cancel a show. When people come to see a play at Shakespeare by the Sea, no matter what, they’re definitely going to take in a performance that night,” Douris said.
Murphy adds that in some ways the fire helped the company consider new plans for the future of the theatre.
“We are going to, very soon, start a capital campaign to take the building down and build a new one that will serve the company and Halifax and other people for the next 25 years, maybe more.”
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