After massive fire, Bedford County Players regroup to discuss future

BEDFORD, Pa. (WJAC) -- Two days after a fire destroyed the Gardner Memorial Theatre at Old Bedford Village, members of the Bedford County Players are coming together to regroup and plan for their future productions.

Early Monday afternoon, the mostly wooden building went up in flames.

Firefighters helped contain the fire in near 90-degree heat.

It's been in the village since 1976 and has been occupied by the players since the '80s.

A state police fire marshal investigation is underway to determine a cause.

Wednesday night, the organization held a meeting to discuss their next steps.

The president says it's not about the venue. It's about the people who perform, with an emphasis on community theater.

A few dozen members gathered at the Old Bedford Village visitor’s center.

The group's leaders wanted to bring everyone up to speed on where they're at with the loss of the theater and what they're planning to do with the rest of the season.

The players did have an upcoming show scheduled for about three weeks from now, but they're postponing it to the first or second week in September. It will be held in the visitor's center.

The children's show will be postponed until next year, and their Christmas show will go on -- they just need to find a new venue.

President Jim Dull says to completely rebuild, it would cost $2.7 million for a basic building, but that cost doesn't include seats, sound or lighting required for shows.

The sound and lighting alone would cost at least $70,000.

Dull says the outpouring of support has been tremendous and other community theaters have offered costumes and equipment, along with many other schools, churches and other businesses offering a venue for shows.

At the meeting, the group discussed committees to figure out temporary and permanent solutions for everything from funding to venues and the shows themselves.

"They had questions. They had concerns. But this gave us an opportunity, really, to grieve a little bit for our loss, but at the same time look ahead and plan where we're going to move to in the future," Dull said.

The board of the Bedford County Players set up a GoFundMe page that aims to raise $2 million.

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