GRANDVIEW, W.Va. — Less than two weeks remain in Theatre West Virginia’s 54th season, a performance season that almost didn’t happen because of financial issues.
“Last September, the Board (for Theatre West Virginia) at the current time voted to close it down and then we got a group of folks together in January and said, ‘No, not on our watch,” Scott Hill, current manager of Theatre West Virginia, said.
The company has returned with the traditional historical drama, “Hatfields & McCoys,” which tells the story of the famous family feud. It runs through Aug. 2 at Grandview’s Cliffside Amphitheatre in Raleigh County.
“We just had to make some fundamental changes, understanding that the funding, how it had been funded in the past, is not going to be how it’s going to be funded in the future,” Hill said. “We had to step up and make some changes and we were able to do that.”
First founded in 1955, Theatre West Virginia is now operating more efficiently with the help of volunteers who invest their money and their time. That operation is drawing crowds. Hill said attendance for the shows has been good, so far, with people from 28 states and five countries on hand already this summer. At times, Hill said show attendance has topped 600.
On Tuesday’s MetroNews “Talkline,” Hill seemed confident about the future of Theatre West Virginia.
“We’re going in the right direction. Our crowds are good. Our support financially from some of our sponsors are coming around and, I think when we go to the Legislature in January, there will be a much different story to tell and we’ll give them some confidence in funding Theatre West Virginia again,” he said.
Altogether, 17 shows for “Hatfields & McCoys” are being staged this summer.
More information about Theatre West Virginia is available at www.theatrewestvirginia.com. Show tickets can also be ordered by calling 304-256-6800.