Easter Sunday’s 7.2 magnitude earthquake centered in Mexico came about 40 seconds before the end of Act I, said General Director Leon Natker, who was at the podium at the time at the Birch North Park Theatre. The audience came to its feet and house management brought up the lights, but the musicians and singers completed the act even as the chandeliers were saying and audience members were filing out without panicking. Once the act was over, the artists were also evacuated. When it was determined there was no danger, everyone re-entered the theatre and Act II began after a regular intermission.
“The good news is that every penny of City of San Diego Redevelopment Agency money that was spent on earthquake retrofitting the theatre was well spent,” said Natker, noting that there was no damage that could be discerned to the recently renovated 82-year-old building. “No cracks, nothing broken, as far as we can tell everything held up perfectly, which was the whole idea.”
“There is nothing like singing a high c during an earthquake,” said Megan Weston, in the lead role of Mabel. “I was downstage center, right over the orchestra. I felt the stage move like a wave. The house lights came up and the audience headed for the exits, but we all kept going to the end!”There’s still a weekend left to catch this earth-shaking show, so if you haven’t seen Pirates yet, now’s your chance!
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