Base Theater Closure Puts CHOC Follies in Stage Bind

A bad review by critics--in this case structural engineers--has brought the curtain down on a theater at the former El Toro Marine Corps Air Station, leaving producers of a popular annual Orange County fund-raiser scrambling to find a new venue.

The best alternative so far: staging the CHOC Follies--which has raised about $800,000 since 1997 for Children’s Hospital of Orange County--under a massive 900-seat tent on a nearby base parking lot.

But renting the tent could more than double production costs to at least $125,000, cutting sharply into proceeds earmarked to support CHOC programs, organizers said.

“It’s terrible,” said producer Gloria Zigner, adding that some organizers flirted with canceling the show. “It did cross someone’s lips, but it’s never really been an option. Too many people have spent too much time.”

The problem began with an inspection last month that found severe structural problems in the 1,200-seat theater, built in 1944 as a lecture hall and later used for USO shows and movies.

The theater was closed for 15 years before CHOC Follies organizers cleaned it up three years ago to stage their tongue-in-cheek musical productions. CHOC Follies used the building for its 1999 and 2000 shows at no cost, which helped limit overhead for the fund-raisers.

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The recent inspection, by Jeff Oviedo & Associates of Costa Mesa, concluded that a “major structural deficiency” plus termite and dry-rot damage could cause arches supporting the roof to collapse. It also found that roof leaks had left some interior boards and ceilings unsafe. Repairs were estimated at $1.4 million.

After reading the report, the theater was ruled off-limits by Orange County officials overseeing the former Marine base’s conversion to nonmilitary use.

“There’s a potential life safety issue,” said Robert Richardson, deputy director for the conversion project. “The right thing to do is to ensure that folks are able to have an event take place in a safe environment, where nobody is exposed to risk.”

CHOC Follies organizers said they learned last week that their production was suddenly homeless after the 85-member volunteer cast of “Stage Struck: A Backstage Musical Mystery” had already gone into rehearsal at South Coast Plaza West.

“It’s a funky, Quonset hut kind of theater but it was terrific for us,” Zigner said.

El Toro reuse officials have offered organizers space for a tent and the former officers’ club for a pre-event reception. Organizers now are trying to line up a tent, stage, lighting, seats and other amenities before the March 30 and 31 performances.

“I think we’re going to be able to tap into one of the buildings for power, but we might have to bring in generators and heaters,” Zigner said.

“It’s so frustrating. . . . So now we’re out begging for people to help us defray the cost of the [tent], which is mighty.”