Curtains remain closed at Sault Community Theatre Centre

The show will go on, but it's anyone's guess as to when Sault Community Theatre Centre will open its doors for live performances and events.

The venue, owned by the Algoma District School Board and housed in White Pines Collegiate and Vocational School, was closed when Ontario issued the inital COVID-19 emergency orders in March. Live performances there have either been cancelled or postponed until 2021, with full refunds being offered for dates that have been permanently cancelled. 

Although the theatre centre is operating at what's described as "minimum staffing levels" in order to keep the box office up and running, its president says the non-profit organization can recover from the shutdown brought on by the ongoing pandemic.  

“We plan to resume normal operations at the theatre centre when it is safe to do so, with governing bodies approvals, and when local and touring shows resume,” said Sault Community Theatre Centre President Norm Fera, in an email to SooToday earlier this week. “The theatre centre is well positioned to recover from the current situation brought on by COVID-19. The board of directors executive team has continued to meet on a regular basis via Zoom to take care of business matters and planning for resuming operations.”

Joe Santa Maria, business superintendent for Algoma District School Board (ADSB), says the board continues to follow recommendations from the province's chief medical officer and the ministry. 

"Moving forward, ADSB personnel continue to be in regular communication with the Algoma Public Health Unit (our lead agency) and the Ministry of Education who receives direction and information from the Ontario Chief Medical Officer of Health,” Santa Maria told SooToday via email. 

Sault Community Theatre Centre is now seeking donations through its 'Become a Culture Champion' campaign.

"We encourage the public to make a donation, so that we can continue to provide a top notch theatre facility," Fera said. 

Full refunds for the centre's permanently cancelled shows can be obtained by leaving a message for box office staff at (705) 945-7299.