Thursday, Oct. 08, 2009
In with the new; what to do with the old?
I picked up Tuesday morning's newspaper and was immediately drawn to the story about yet another historic Myrtle Beach building set for a date with the wrecking ball.
The Chesterfield Inn, one of the city's oldest structures erected circa 1946, will be a casualty of the new $6 million oceanfront boardwalk being built between First and 14th avenues North as the inn's owners want to redevelop the property.
And it is making way for what?
Another friggin' miniature golf course. I'm not joking.
Let's hope the plans also call for another pancake house, beachwear store, CVS, Walgreens, Wal-Mart, and tourist information center. (Sarcasm intended.)
A few blocks over from Ocean Boulevard sits the Rivoli Theatre, gathering dust in the shadows of the former Myrtle Beach Pavilion Amusement Park parking garage. The Pavilion, as you recall, is gone too.
As renovation efforts have shifted to creating a brand, spanking new Rivoli Theatre added to the Myrtle Beach Convention Center, isn't the writing on the wall for the half-century-old Rivoli Theatre wasting away on Chester Street?
Let's backtrack: The Rivoli Theatre on Chester Street was purchased by the city of Myrtle Beach in the late '90s and was supposed to be renovated and used as a performing arts center - something local arts patrons and supporters say is direly needed.
But the art deco, box-shaped venue was deemed too costly to renovate and too small to accommodate the area's burgeoning arts community and programs.
Instead, the focus is now on a new 700-800-seat performing arts center, also adopting the Rivoli's name, to be built onto the end of the convention center on Oak Street.
That project took a major step forward recently as the performing arts center's board announced the hiring of a new executive director.
Hey, they must be serious about this thing, huh?
So, who is this guy that will lead the beach's arts patrons and supporters to the Promised Land?
His name is Dale Vivirito and he comes to us from Toledo, Ohio, where he oversaw the 112-year-old Valentine Theatre.
"I'm confident the citizens of Myrtle Beach and the many patrons of the arts throughout our area will be happy to know we've hired a seasoned professional to lead the Rivoli Theatre,'' said the Rivoli Theatre Group's Board President Robert Pickett in a press release. "We're excited about the future of the arts ... and the Rivoli Theatre plans to play a major role in that future."
But I'm not going to give away all the details here, you'll have to flip to page 10 for correspondent Kimberly Moore's profile of Vivirito and exploration of the new performing arts center he is in charge of bringing to a culture-starved city. Moore is well-versed in all things Rivoli as she penned our cover story (June 2008) exploring the old cinema house as it approached its 50th anniversary.
In addition, we've got a brief update on the aforementioned old Rivoli Theatre on page 13.
I'm all for a new performing arts facility here at the beach (as I was also clamoring for a new arena at Coastal Carolina University), and think the plan for the new Rivoli is great, from the info I have gathered.
Anything that increases the prospects of bringing more culture - and more nationally and internationally-known performers and productions - to the beach, I'm all for.
And most importantly, this new center for the arts is intended to enhance and illuminate the artists, performers and culture merchants already bubbling under the surface of the Grand Stand. Let's hope our various arts organizations can put aside petty turf wars and come together to support this cause, because it sounds like an incredible opportunity.
Yet, I'm dismayed at what seems to be the inevitable fate of the old Rivoli.
Will anyone save it from joining the Chesterfield Inn on the dubious list of Myrtle Beach sites erased from the landscape?
Does anyone give a damn about history, or is it all about new development and greed?