A fire ravaged Kansas City’s Warwick Theatre, but cast and crew know the show must go on

On a makeshift stage, which is also prepared for church service, cast members of the Metropolitan Ensemble Theatre rehearse for “Joe Turner’s Come and Gone. Just a month after a fire left the historic Warwick Theatre charred and out of commission, the Metropolitan Ensemble Theatre will perform this week in a temporary space while the community rallies to help out.

Rehearsals in Unconventional Spaces

Rehearsals for the play “Joe Turner’s Come and Gone” ideally take place in a windowless room with carefully programmed lights casting spotlights on actors in the dimly lit space. But as the cast of the Metropolitan Ensemble Theatre prepares for opening night, its scenes are bathed in sunlight.

“It is what it is. We’re still going to make it what we can,” said Terraye Watson, a supporting actor in the upcoming play. “They do say once you limit people, it makes you use different things to come out and do better stuff.”

An airy, luminous place of worship, like this sanctuary in a Westport church, is not a theater troupe’s typical venue of choice for a production of an emotionally wrenching August Wilson play. But when a multi-alarm fire leaves your home theater with smoke and water damage and charred debris, it gets the job done.

Adapting to Challenges

An accidentally sparked fire at The Warwick Theatre, 3927 Main St., in the early hours of Feb. 7 burned across three floors. The resident performance group, Metropolitan Ensemble Theatre (MET), was working toward a Feb. 23 opening night performance of “Joe Turner’s Come and Gone.” The show was supposed to run through March 10. Now, despite losing half their run, the cast and crew are preparing for five performances at Westport Presbyterian Church, 201 Westport Road, March 7 through March 10.

Watson, who fell in love with the stage in high school and college and now acts professionally, said theater people are trained to adapt. “Just the theater aspects, not all of them are going to be here. Just the spectacle of it, the lights, from the actual set pieces to the furniture to the props,” he said. “We’re still going to make it what we can. We’re just bodies and our sound, that we can do, which we think will make it that much more powerful.”

Shortly after the fire, the cast gathered to discuss if they wanted to go forward. Dominique Lorae, a supporting actress, said the decision was unanimous.

“The Show Must Go On”

“As actors do, the show must go on,” said Lorae, who has been on the stage for eight years. “We had already had a lot of rehearsal time, we had already put in a lot of character work. So for us, we really wanted to see this come together. We really want our little family and community to present something that’s worthwhile of this time.”

Challenges of Adjustment

“Joe Turner’s Come and Gone” takes place in a three-story boarding house. A set’s staircases and various levels are essential for showing the close quarters and the eavesdropping that goes on among the characters. Construction on a multi-level set was about to begin at The Warwick before the fire. Now, the cast makes do by shifting the ‘upstairs’ to the left side of the church’s stage.

The fire at the Warwick damaged public restrooms, dressing rooms, the kitchen, a rear lobby area, and the main staircase, as well as the air conditioning and electrical systems. The front lobby, loft, and theater space itself remain untouched, except for smoke damage.

Karen Paisley, producing artistic director and co-founder of the MET, said the organization’s top priorities are taking care of its people and ensuring that productions continue. “It’s also really important to be able to not cancel a show because that’s other people’s livelihoods,” Paisley said.

Rebuilding and Recovery

For 17-year-old Geneva Bryant, “Joe Turner’s Come and Gone” is her professional debut. She’s acted in six school productions and said that, as a young African American woman, she wanted to learn about Black history through playing her character, Zonia. The fire made her even more passionate about gaining this experience.

“It made me very determined. I am a determined person, I love challenges,” she said.

The source of the fire was traced to a new employee unknowingly discarding a combustible stain or varnish in a basement trash receptacle on Feb. 6, Paisley said. The fire gained strength until a neighbor saw the flames and dialed emergency services in the early hours of Feb. 7. It was extinguished a few hours later.

A Community in Support

In the wake of the fire, several patrons have reached out asking to help, Paisley said. She said financial support and volunteer help with cleanups will be critical in the months ahead. The theater company set up a “fire recovery fund” on its website. It also created a GoFundMe with a goal of $65,000 to assist with immediate relocation expenses, cleaning services, meeting the insurance deductible and other unexpected costs caused by the fire. As of last week, the two funds had raised close to $25,000.

Paisley estimates that immediate repairs and operational costs to keep the theater afloat for the next four months will amount to $120,000. Total repairs are expected to exceed $1.2 million, with insurance covering a significant portion of the cost. Repairs to bring the theater up to current building codes will also cost extra and not be covered by insurance.

Paisley said the theater will also need volunteers to help with the salvaging and recovery process. Raising the curtain on the Warwick once again will be a community project.

Those looking to donate to the fund can visit warwickkc.org/fire-recovery-fund or their GoFundMe. Interested volunteers can follow the Metropolitan Ensemble Theatre Facebook page for more updates and opportunities to help out. Tickets for “Joe Turner’s Come and Gone” can be purchased online or at the door.