The Augusta Players, a decades-old institution in the Garden City, now has a place downtown to call its own.
Friday afternoon, the nonprofit theater company’s board of directors, the Augusta Arts Council, students from the Jessye Norman School of the Arts and Mayor Johnson gathered outside a refurbished warehouse on Ellis Street, reputedly a former firehouse, to celebrate its 80th theatrical season and to cut the ribbon on its new offices.
“This is your home. It’s not ours. This belongs to you,” said Scott Seidl, executive director of the Augusta Players. “This belongs to the Augusta arts community, the Augusta theater community, the downtown community, and Augusta at large. This is your building, and the building is just a tool. It’s a place that allows us to create and to share and to support and to teach, and that’s why this is a special day.”
Mayor Johnson proclaimed Oct. 4, 2024 Augusta Players Inc. Day in honor of its latest season and its then-upcoming new center of operations, as the city was still wrestling with the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.
Since Augusta Players launched its first season in 1945, it had never had its own space. Show rehearsals were conducted at the Jessye Norman School, and offices were housed at the Sacred Heart Cultural Center.
The new Augusta Players headquarters represents a $3 million investment to both purchase and renovate the space. The Players garnered $2 million of that through fundraising efforts, and are currently raising the remaining million through initiatives such as its continuing legacy brick campaign, in which donors can have custom bricks engraved with their names.
Alongside a lobby and a suite of offices, the building includes rehearsal space, two dance studios and a scenic shop for warehousing and fashioning sets, props and costumes.
“I’m excited to say that this is not the end for the Augusta players. We have not reached the final line,” said Ryan Abel, chair of the Augusta Players’ board of directors, offering accolades and thanks, including to the late Debi Ballas, longtime executive and artistic director who passed away in 2021. “There’s still so much more for us to accomplish, so much more for us to do and impact this community in positive ways and enrich every single Augustan and people that are part of the greater Augusta area… excited for where we’re going. It’s going to be one heck of a ride.”
The Augusta Players 80th season is ongoing, with its latest show, “Anastasia,” premiering hours after the ribbon-cutting at the Imperial Theatre. The Augusta Players offices are located at 712 Ellis St.
Skyler Andrews is a reporter covering business for The Augusta Press. Reach him at skyler@theaugustapress.com.
