Published: October 29, 2023 | Last Updated on October 30, 2023, 11:42 AM
OKLAHOMA CITY — Carpenter Square Theatre is no stranger to setbacks. The company is in its 40th year and 40th season. In that time, they’ve gone through several transformations, some planned and some forced by floods and fire.
“Our first venue was the old location of the Carpenter Paper Company Warehouse. The name just kind of stuck,” said Rhonda Clark, longtime Artistic Director of Carpenter Square.
As the resident company inside Stage Center, Carpenter Square was forced to move when that location flooded in 2010 and ruined the electrical and HVAC infrastructure as well as many of CST’s props and wardrobe stored in the basement. Later, in 2014, the owners wrecked the building and cleared the site.
Their second location on W. Main was home until 2019. They then decided to move into a modernized yet industrial location at 1009 W Reno near Western. “Our old location served us well, but we were ready to move into a bigger space,” Clark said during a sit-down interview with me Tuesday inside their spacious new lobby.
It all seemed ready to get going, with construction and remodeling underway, when COVID hit in early 2020. The performing arts came to a halt, and it was a hiatus that would be met with more speed bumps before it was all over.
In 2021, a fire completely consumed a large warehouse a few blocks away that housed decades’ worth of costumes and props.
“Luckily, amazingly, the fire didn’t affect operations, other than some materials that we planned to use with our first show in the new space,” said Board Chair and Project Manager Rick Allen Lippert. “We had a wonderful response from the community after that fire.”
We got so many donations, outreach, well-wishes, and volunteers,” Lippert continued. “It really didn’t set us back as much as it could have.”
Finally, plans were set for Carpenter Square to make its grand reopening in 2023. But as opening approached, more issues cropped up.
“This building is new to us, but it has existed in some capacity for several decades,” Lippert said. “We had to laugh to keep from crying. It truly was one step forward and two steps back. We were dealing with a 75-year-old building and nothing was up to code. Everything had to be done and redone” he said.
“It was a fantastic feeling when we finally reopened!” Clark remembers. Their first show in the new space was Steve Martin’s Picasso at the Lapine Agile, and it opened to an enthusiastic response in July.
“As exhilarating as opening night was, it was even better seeing the lights fade on the final performance of that first production. It was like, ‘Yeah, we did it! We got through the whole show!’ It was the best feeling yet.” Lippert said.
A tour of the space revealed a brighter, bigger, and more intentional space than Carpenter Square has ever had. No longer are they borrowing or fitting into a space that wasn’t made for them. They’ve curated the experience for patrons and artists, and as a result, have created a beautiful new home for themselves.
“We wanted it to be special,” Clark said. Lippert agreed, saying “We wanted to create a space that actors wanted to come play in, and patrons wanted to keep coming back to”.
Touting their amenities, Clark said, “We are very proud of our seating, which is spaced out to accommodate social distancing, should we need to do that again. Our rows have drink rails and bag hooks, and our bathrooms are the nicest we’ve ever had. We even have a selfie station! There was no such thing as a selfie when we started in 1984!”
The space was designed with pandemics in mind, with as many amenities being touchless as possible, including their touchless ticketing system. They have plans to incorporate all touchless restrooms, and their ventilation system — especially in the theater itself — is designed to pull air from the floor and out through the top of the building to minimize airborne virus exposure.
A large portion of their indoor fixtures have been repurposed and donated, and volunteers have lent their time and talents to rebuilding the space. The inviting and warm all-LED lighting system and striped garage floors give it an industrial feel, and it fits right in amongst the old factories and former auto shops near Film Row in downtown OKC.
“We started in an old warehouse, and we wanted to harken back to our roots with this new location,” Lippert said. “It’s a space that is unique, it pays homage to our past, and it’s up to date. Plus, the place is just so damn cool.”
Carpenter Square’s new space is located at their brand-new home, 1009 West Reno Ave, OKC OK. For tickets and info on their current season, visit carpentersquare.com.
Adrienne Proctor is a theater and arts writer in Oklahoma City. She's been contributing to the arts reporting space since 2017.
