by Alex Grosset, Arts and Entertainment

15/7-The art community of Nor Easter came out in droves this weekend to attend the groundbreaking ceremony for the new Empress Theater in Oeil de Fleur. The original theater, which served as a center for dramatic arts in the Triumvirate for over a century, was tragically claimed during a fire earlier this year.

The theater’s rebuild is being funded by patrons from around the Triumvirate. Among those patrons is Delando, who very publicly provided nearly half of the necessary funding. It was during a performance of his most recent play, “The Fires of D’kalm D’korr”, that the previous theater burned down.

“The loss of the original building is a shame,” a representative for the notoriously reclusive playwright said. “But this rebuild should be approached as a chance for renewal, and hailed as the birth of a new era in Nor Eastern drama. The new building will be outfitted with the newest advances in stage technology, including a modular stage featuring a turn table, light weight and highly customizable rigging for lights and stage dressing, and most importantly, an updated fire suppression system.”

The names of those who died in the fire were read at the ceremony, though it was cut short for the purposes of time. Shortly thereafter, a plaque featuring the names of the theater’s highest paying contributors was unveiled. The plaque will be mounted on the lobby wall. A relief of Delando’s face is the centerpiece of the plaque.

The new Empress theater is scheduled to receive patrons this winter. It’s first show will be the re-opening of “Fires”, currently on hiatus due to an investigation, which showed no wrong doing on Delando’s part.