ST. GEORGE, Utah — The longtime executive and artistic director of St. George Musical Theater was terminated this week as the community theater prepares to move to a new venue with a rebranding.
Bruce Bennett, who led the theater group for 13 years and was involved for 29 of its 32 years, said three board members informed him Wednesday that he was terminated.
"I am devastated not only by being separated from St. George Musical Theater, where I've poured out so many years, but I'm also devastated that SGMT's name is out there in the middle of this controversy when we really should be in a sentiment of celebration," Bennett said.
The theater group is preparing for major changes this fall. After spending most of its existence at the 150-year-old Opera House, it's moving to a bigger theater at the new St. George Place shopping center, which replaced the former Kmart location.
The new venue will be called the Dimon Legacy Theater, named after Dimon McFerson, who was CEO of Nationwide Insurance in the 1990s and recently stepped down as chairman of the theater's board. The name change has sparked controversy in a town where debates still continue over Dixie State University changing its name to Utah Tech four years ago.
Bennett took over as executive and artistic director in 2011 after the theater nearly folded. When "Kiss Me Kate" opened Thursday night at the historic St. George Opera House, it was only the second opening he had missed in his tenure. The other was when he took his wife on a promised trip.
"The sad part of all of this is that controversy over rebranding is coming just prior to us trying to open our brand new theater, and that's really sad because when you're opening a brand new theater that so many people have wanted, have dreamed about for so many years," Bennett said.
FOX 13 heard from nearly a dozen performers and patrons after they were informed about the name change. A later memo clarified that the St. George Musical Theater name would still be around but either as "presented by" or "formerly known as St. George Musical Theater."
An additional email sent out while Fox 13 was interviewing Bennett Friday morning clarified:
“The St. George Musical Theater brand name has tremendous value and a legacy in this community, and the Board is not unaware of that history. As a result, shows in the Dīmon Legacy Theatre will be presented under the banner of “St. George Musical Theater presents” to honor that legacy.”
Jeff Hilton, a board member who joined last summer after retiring from a 40-year marketing career, is spearheading the changes. He said the new theater will accommodate over 400 patrons instead of the current 100 to 120.
"We kind of look at it taking what was a sort of a mom and pop community operation and keeping that same spirit, but moving it up," Hilton said. "We're not reinventing. We're not destroying what the Opera House was. We're moving it down main. We're going to make it better and bigger. And it's still going to be a community theater."
However, performers and community members say they will still go on with a protest scheduled for 11 a.m. for Saturday morning.
Nicole Hadley, the theater's choreographer who volunteers on a modest stipend, said the issue goes beyond just the name.
"It's not just about the name. We want to keep the spirit and the purpose and the value and the vision of SGMT the same. And that vision was established by Bruce Bennett," Hadley said. "We need him. We need our captain back."
Hadley said it felt like those wanting the name change weren't listening to the people producing the shows.
Bennett emphasized the importance of understanding the community for success.
"The secret of our success at St. George Musical Theater, we are a community theater, we've always embraced that. That means you really need to understand your community and your patrons in order to be successful," Bennett said.
The current Opera House has its quirks, including performers talking about the old building being held together by duct tape. Patrons often stand outside in the cold because there's no lobby and must go across the street to use restrooms.
The building even has a bullet hole in the roof from the late 1800s, when an inebriated miner at a dramatic performance didn't realize the show wasn't real life and shot at the ceiling while defending a character's wife.
Bennett said he believes there's a way to honor McFerson’s generosity while preserving the SGMT brand.
"I have my own personal opinion of how to do that, and I think the public is speaking and we need to listen to them," Bennett said. “There has been a lot of wild things that have happened. I believe in the show must go on.”
Hilton acknowledged that not everyone agrees with board decisions but said they're committed to preserving what makes the theater special.
"It is a nonprofit organization. And so we do have a board of directors and they make decisions and not everyone always agrees with the decision, but we are intent on keeping the spirit and the community and what St. George Musical Theater is," Hilton said.
