As we now enter our final week of Nymph Errant and our summer season, another exciting thing has occurred.  Shakespeare has been placed in his permanent home, up in the alcove, at the base of the Tibbits' cupola. 





The Shakespeare bust was purchased by Artistic Director Charles Burr as his contribution to the Tibbits restoration.  In the pictures you see below, after our Wednesday matinee show of Nymph Errant yesterday, Charles helped tie the pulley rope to Shakespeare, then climbed the scaffolding to place Shakespeare with his own two hands.

Charles Burr climbs the scaffolding

Many of us stood below to view this incredible milestone step in the reconstruction process.  The scaffolding will be coming down soon at the end of August.  Then the balcony roof will be built onto the front of the theatre where it originally was located.  The work will end sometime in Feb. with a grand opening of the fully restored Tibbits in April.

Charles holds the bust of Shakespeare

For many of us returning actors this is incredible to see, as we know it is really special for local Coldwater citizens to see this prized jewel be restored.  Earlier this summer, two former summer company members from the early 90's returned to visit and take a tour of the new Tibbits.  They were flabbergasted at what they saw, the makings of all the hopes they had heard about many years ago, of Tibbits original look and grandeur, now coming to life before their eyes.

Charles Burr places Shakespeare in the alcove

Nymph Errant, also directed by Artistic Director Charles Burr, is another gem from days past.  Originally produced in England during 1933, it never crossed the ocean to Broadway, mostly due to the Depression, and the cost of the production.  A few people went back to the book in the 1980's and rewrote the production you can see on Tibbits stage for one more week.  This version, scaled the cast size down, and also tied up some loose end stories from the original script.

Charles gazes at Shakespeare in his final home 

This Nymph Errant, has the wonderful nostalgic feel of a Cole Porter show, but has a fun modern twist, with Dick Baker playing all 8 different, reappearing, gentleman in the lead Evangeline's life.  This through line gives great humor and spunky feel to the piece.  Everyone in the cast reappears from time to time as other characters, keeping the pace clipping along at a nice speed, while leading the audience through all the places and journeys Nymph Errant takes Evangeline Edwards.  Make sure to catch Nymph Errant this week playing through Saturday evening August 18th.

See you at the show!!!

The American flag flew today on top of the Tibbits…on top of its newly installed cupola. What a glorious sight! And a sight which hasn’t been seen in more than 70 years.

I first saw the flag from several blocks away as I left city hall. I confess, I spent part of the morning driving around town to see from what distance I was still able to see the dome and the flag. (I could see it from south-bound I-69.)

The cupola, the dome which sat on the original opera house, was removed from the building in the mid 1930s along with much of the other architectural detail as the already 50-year-old theatre was renovated into a movie house. Many volunteers have been raising funds and working on the restoration of Tibbits to bring it back to its original grandeur. A great deal has been done but nothing is as visible as the accomplishment of this past week.

On Friday the cupola was raised to the top of the building. What a glorious day and an awesome sight. People gathered in the parking lot, on the rooftops, along Chicago Street and at many of the businesses in the city to witness the occasion. It’s hard to explain the exhilaration I felt witnessing the 23,000 pound structure being lifted and set into place. And then the flagpole with its gold eagle on top, raised to the crown of the structure.

This is truly a restoration milestone.

There are photos and a video of the construction and installation on the home page… www.Tibbits.org. Please let me know if you watched on Friday, what you think of Tibbits’ new look, or from what locations you have been able to see the dome or the flag.

By the way, the ‘S’ stands for Smith…Barton Smith Tibbits, the man who built the building. The ‘B’ and the ‘T’ will be restored when we raise the rest of the funds—only $450,000 to go. More information on that is also on the web site on the restoration page http://www.tibbits.org/restoration.htm.

Christine Delaney

Executive Director

$500,000 grant for Tibbits Opera House Facade

It has been really hard to curtail our excitement around here lately…Tibbits recently learned the City of Coldwater received the Scenic Byways Grants from the Federal Highway Association for half a million dollars for the restoration of the Tibbits Opera House!

This announcement is a tremendous boost to our restoration effort. The 126-year-old opera house is a notable landmark and asset along the US-12 Heritage Trail. We are grateful for the support of the City of Coldwater, the Heritage Trail committee, the Michigan Department of Transportation, our legislators, and Bob Welke in making this happen. For more information on the grant, go to http://www.tibbits.org/NSBPMDOTgrantPR12-01-08.htm

Tibbits is already gearing up for Summer Theatre and Charles Burr will be back soon with information on the shows and updates as he prepares for the new season. We really have so much more happening at the theatre besides Summer Theatre. We’ll start keeping you up to date on the other events as they happen. …Christine Delaney, Executive Director