New DI Performing Arts Center in the works

Broadway-caliber productions may soon take center stage on Daniel Island. It was announced at the September 9 Daniel Island Speakers Series event that a Performing Arts Center is in the works for the island. Daniel Island Business Association (DIBA) President Pete Harper told those in attendance for the program that plans are underway to bring a 450-seat, state-of-the art theatre to a parcel of land along River Landing Drive behind the UBS Building. “It’s a vision at this point,” said Harper. “But I think with a lot of hard work and some time that will be put into it, it can definitely become a reality.” Harper later confirmed that the land for the center is currently under contract with the Daniel Island Company. A commercial real estate agent who helped secure the property, Harper said the visionary behind the project is Mary Gould, founder and producer of the South of Broadway Theatre Company. According to brochures and flyers shared by Gould at an information table at the event, the center is to be a civic venue accommodating entertainment, business meetings, and educational activities for the Daniel Island Community. Planners are hoping the Performing Arts Center will become a “landmark destination” on the island that will not only attract theater patrons from the Charleston region, but from the state and nation as well. “It’s brand new,” added Harper, who said that DIBA is ‘100 percent’ behind the project. “It’s only been a couple of weeks that we’ve really started to work on this. But it’s really exciting!” Marigold Arts Development, Inc., operating as the South of Broadway Theatre Company (SBTC), is listed as the developer of the project. The SBTC, currently located in the Park Circle community in North Charleston, would be the new facility’s main tenant. Plans call for a large “proscenium” theatre, a 99-seat “black box” theatre, and combined indoor lobby and outdoor plaza gathering spaces for the public. Look for more details on the project in future issues of The Daniel Island News.