The Ivanhoe village home of Orlando’s Renaissance Theatre Co. is condemned as of Friday afternoon, after an annual inspection by department officials, co-founder Donald Rupe says.
The department placed neon-hued “condemned” stickers on the building’s doors late Friday. A notice to vacate was also placed on the building located at 2201 McRae Ave.
The closure comes as the theater presents its annual Halloween immersive show Nosferatu. Rupe says the changes they request be made are “totally surmountable,” and the company will work with the city to address the issues, although the future remains uncertain.
The City of Orlando has not yet responded to a request for more information.
“Rest assured, the building itself is okay, and the Ren is okay,” Rupe said in a statement Saturday. However, “a temporary closing like this is a threat to Renaissance Theatre Company.”
“We don’t think building codes really address the kind of theater that we make; we think the immersive nature of our shows requires a different kind of inspection than traditional theatre shows, and we look forward to working with the city on permitting future productions and making sure everything is approved and safe—as it has been every year since we opened.”
Nosferatu has been presenting an “immersive vampire experience” in Orlando for the past five years, combining macabre performance art and a LGBTQ+-friendly environment with a vampire-themed nightclub employing live performers, drag artists and dancers. The after-hours “V Bar” show features local drag performers doing their vampiric best after the main show ends. This year V Bar started on Aug. 29, and Nosferatu kicked off its run Sept 5.
Rupe says the event is by far the theater’s biggest annual money-maker and biggest expense. This year, The Ren spent about $500,000 making the show.
“To lose another queer-friendly venue, in a moment where we need them so desperately, would be devastating,” Rupe says.
Supporters can help out, Rupe says, by making donations online or buying tickets when the space reopens. There is not yet a reopening timeline available, and the theater says more information will be shared, hopefully, this week, when they meet with city officials. Advocates in city and state government are also working with the Ren to help resolve these issues quickly.
The current plan is to pay performers this week, and as of late Sunday, over $9,000 has been raised from more than 100 individual donors.
This is a developing story.
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