Houston Theatres Damaged By Flood
The gems of Houston’s vaunted arts district have been swamped by floods from nearby Buffalo Bayou and face significant repairs, threatening the fall performance season that would have begun next week. The Alley Theatre, which completed a $46.5 million renovation just two years ago, appears to have suffered the most damage so far, although arts companies will not be able to fully assess the destruction for a week or more. Venturing into the Alley with a
flashlight on Monday, managing director Dean Gladden found water slapping at the ceiling of the downstairs Neuhaus Stage and its lobby. Those same spaces were submerged in 2001 during flooding from Tropical Storm Allison, forcing them to be gutted and renovated for $4 million. “You can’t drain it. You can only pump the water, but it’s already up to the ceiling as high as it can go,” Gladden said. The basement level dressing rooms are also submerged – and, most importantly, the power supply for the whole building.
