Woodstock Opera House open, but 3rd floor still under construction

The Woodstock Opera House is back open for business after renovations, but patrons still are reminded to “pardon our dust” while work wraps up.

The Opera House closed this summer for renovation work and was expected to be back open last month. But, into November, the building still is under construction and the work to add a third floor to the back of the building probably won’t be complete until closer to the spring, Opera House officials said.

Renovations inside the performing arts venue included adding in a new bar on the first floor, complete with four service stations, tappers and soda guns, among other items. The downstairs area had doors removed to open up the space and improve traffic flow. The Opera House also installed a small staircase in the bar area that connects to the staircase leading up to the auditorium.

Perhaps the most external, public element of the work is the scaffolding on the building facing Calhoun Street. That’s for the third floor addition to the south annex.

That portion of the renovation has been giving officials the most headaches.

“Clearly there are many things that we can still do for the theater as we move beyond the completion of the current renovations.”

—   Daniel Campbell, Woodstock Opera House director

Opera House Director Daniel Campbell said the construction work on the south annex was pushed back because of delays in acquiring steel and the unexpected poor condition of the soil beneath the building, which required construction crews to dig deeper footings to support the structure.

The Opera House expects the work to be completed by March 2025, Campbell said, but added “you never know if there will be additional delays on projects of this size and scope.”

Most of the work in the auditorium has been completed, and the Creative Living Series kicked off programming in the middle of October. The group is the longest-running at the Opera House, so Campbell said, “it seemed appropriate to start with them.”

The auditorium looks similar to how it did before the renovation, but Campbell said under the hood it “got a new engine” with a stage with more spring, better front lighting and a new sound system.

The Opera House also plans to have two seasons of programming each year moving forward. One season will run October to May and the other June to September, Campbell said. The summer season currently is being planned, Campbell said.

The move to seasons was “prompted more by a change in our business practices,” Campbell said. “Previously, we were primarily a rental house, with local and independent producers providing the bulk of our programming. Post-pandemic the Opera House itself took a far more proactive role in programming our event schedule. We now produce about 45% of the annual program, in-house, which prompted us to change the way we market and plan our annual season of events.”

So far this season, Henry Winkler and Yakov Smirnoff stopped by in November. The annual performance of “The Nutcracker” ballet is coming up and, for those coming to town to see whether the furry prognosticator of seasons will say whether to hope for an early spring, “Groundhog Day: The Musical,” is running Jan. 31 to Feb. 16.

While renovation work remains ongoing, Campbell is thinking about other ways to upgrade the amenities at the Opera House. “There is never a shortage” of laundry list items, Campbell said.

The Opera House had a consulting group from Cleveland come through and assess what needs fixing, Campbell said. It identified about $7.5 million in improvements, but only about half of that was covered in this round of renovations.

Peggy Hart, the president of the Friends of the Opera House, said the group was happy about the renovations but it didn’t include some equipment or furnishings. There’s still a need for a keyboard, Hart said, but she wasn’t sure the Friends would be getting it or not.

“We will definitely be there to support them and their needs,” Hart said.

Hart said the group is trying to be more supportive of the resident companies inside the Opera House and is launching a new endowment program.

Some of the projects recommended by the consulting firm but not part of the renovations include installing new seats in the auditorium, rebuilding the balcony, refreshing Stage Left and adding an elevator to the third floor, Campbell said.

“Clearly, there are many things that we can still do for the theater as we move beyond the completion of the current renovations,” Campbell said. “I am a strong advocate for improved [Americans with Disabilities Act] access items, such as the extension of our passenger elevator to the balcony of the theater and repairs to the historic elements of the auditorium. Renovation of the old garage area in the south annex ground floor would also provide us much needed expansion of usable space to provide for rehearsals, classes/education opportunities and art displays.”