Schaap Center construction delays force cancellation of ‘White Christmas’

GROSSE POINTE PARK — High hopes for a happy holiday season for Grosse Pointe Theatre and its audiences were dashed Dec. 2 by news that the production of “White Christmas” — which had been slated to run Dec. 5 to 21 at the new Schaap Center in Grosse Pointe Park — had to be canceled.

Unanticipated construction delays on the building — which had already led to the cancellation of a ticketed community event Nov. 30 — mean that the Schaap Center isn’t ready to host shows or other events yet.

“It is very sad,” Grosse Pointe Theatre Board President Danielle Caralis said. “This cast and crew worked six months to put this on. … It’s so heartbreaking to not let them perform.”

Caralis said GPT did contact other venues in the area — including a high school in St. Clair Shores — but with school and community performances that had already been scheduled months in advance, there wasn’t a place that could accommodate the GPT show and set, even if the set — which was finished at press time — could have been slightly modified. She said there were “only a handful” of places nearby that could have potentially served as alternate locations.

Notices to GPT season ticket holders and others who had purchased tickets for the show went out the evening of Dec. 2. Despite scheduling three weekends’ worth of productions — GPT shows in the past generally ran for two weekends — “White Christmas” was close to selling out, with roughly 3,500 tickets sold before they learned the theater wouldn’t be ready in time.

“We’re going to track down all of the people (who bought tickets) and make sure they get their money back in a timely manner,” Caralis said.

The news was a blow to Schaap Center personnel as well, including Executive Director Anne Bak Marine, who just started working in this role three weeks ago, after having been executive director for Eisenhower Dance Detroit, for which she was once a dancer and choreographer.

“It’s extremely disheartening and sad that ‘White Christmas’ has had to be canceled,” Bak Marine said. “As a performer myself and an arts administrator, I feel their pain. It redoubles my commitment to make (the new theater) the best it can be for Grosse Pointe Theatre.”

Bak Marine said it “wasn’t any one particular thing” that prevented the project from being done by now. Because the 49,000-square-foot building is being constructed to house a climate-controlled art gallery and state-of-the-art, 435-seat theater with a full proscenium and orchestra pit for stage productions and concerts, that has complicated the process. There’s a lot of sensitive lighting, audio and other equipment that can only be installed under certain conditions.

“There’s so many specialized systems going in there that it just takes time,” Bak Marine said.

Ground was broken on the site — which includes some property in Detroit — circa spring 2023. Those involved with the project had hoped to open the Schaap Center in 2025.

Inventor and philanthropist Paul Schaap — president of the Urban Renewal Initiative Foundation — voiced his regret over this news in a Dec. 1 letter to Caralis and the GPT Board, citing “significant construction challenges.”

“Despite extensive efforts to keep our construction project on schedule, we have encountered unforeseen obstacles that have resulted in delays beyond our control. … I want to express how deeply saddened I am that these circumstances have impacted your organization, a beloved community institution that has enriched Grosse Pointe for 78 years,” Schaap wrote.

Recognizing that GPT had already spent money on materials for the set and costumes, as well as other expenses related to mounting this production, Schaap said in his letter he was personally committing $100,000 to GPT to help it navigate “the unexpected challenges posed by the cancellation and allow (GPT) to continue fulfilling (its) mission of bringing exceptional community theatre to our region.”

Bak Marine said they’re now focusing on trying to wrap up work on the structure in time for their next scheduled event, performances by Eisenhower Dance Detroit Jan. 24 and 25, and GPT’s production of “Pride and Prejudice,” slated to open Feb. 19. Bak Marine said she hopes the “community is patient as we prepare the space properly.”

When completed, the Schaap Center is expected to host productions by community, regional and national arts organizations.

“Once we get across the finish line, it’s going to be amazing,” Bak Marine said. “I can’t wait to welcome people into the building.”

Besides the theater, the building will be home to art galleries, one of which will feature work from the private collection of Richard and Jane Manoogian. The Manoogians and Paul and the late Carol Schaap, all of Grosse Pointe Park, have been the major donors who’ve spearheaded this project since it was first conceptualized more than a decade ago.

If they can secure the rights to stage it, Caralis said GPT is exploring the possibility of remounting “White Christmas” during the 2026 holiday season, ideally with the current cast and crew, which numbers more than 100.

“I think there would be a lot of support for doing this a year from now,” Caralis said.

For more information about GPT, visit gpt.org. For more about the Schaap Center, visit schaapcenter.org.