Sunday February 16, 2025
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A message from The Kentucky Center’s President and CEO, Kim Baker:
As you may know, The Kentucky Center is owned by the Commonwealth of Kentucky.
Moving forward, our friends and partners at the Commonwealth Finance and Administration Cabinet are working very closely with us on all remediation, restoration efforts, and the schedule for completion of the building project.
The Finance Cabinet is working in coordination with Metro Louisville, The Kentucky Center, Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet and others to work through this process as quickly and efficiently as possible.
We thank Cabinet Secretary William M. Landrum III and his team for their support and leadership during this challenging time. State inspectors are currently conducting the thorough damage assessment necessary to determine the building’s safety.
The time needed to complete that assessment precluded our ability to present PNC Broadway in Louisville’s production of Waitress, scheduled June 26-July 1. This was a tough decision, but PNC Broadway in Louisville president Leslie Broecker understands and supports the decision. All ticket buyers will be issued refunds.
In the coming days, we will be in a better position to determine plans for future performances.
The Center will remain closed to the public for now, but the business of The Center continues.
With The Kentucky Center Foundation’s recent purchase of the Brown Theatre, we now have an alternate space in our family of venues that can accommodate a number of events and performances.
In our nearly 35 year history, The Kentucky Center building has faced other calamities, and always comes back stronger than ever. Just like the proud community we serve, when disaster strikes, we pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off and get back to work.
The dedication of our staff and love from our community reminds us all that The Kentucky Center is more than a building, it is an idea that binds us together through the joy, love and power of the arts.
The wonderful artists and audiences we serve at The Kentucky Center can rest assured we are doing everything in our power to return the building to a fully operational state as quickly and safely as possible.
Photo: The Kentucky Center
Please be advised that we were notified by officials at The Kentucky Center that WAITRESS, originally scheduled to play The Kentucky Center June 26-July 1, must be cancelled due to recent fire damage within the venue. As the owner of the building, the Kentucky Finance and Administration Cabinet, working in partnership with officials at The Kentucky Center, decided to close the building for next week’s performance based on initial assessments.
Safety of patrons, staff, and performers is of utmost importance. All purchased tickets will be automatically refunded within the next several weeks.
“It’s regrettable that the presentation of WAITRESS must be cancelled, but safety is a priority”, said Leslie Broecker, President of PNC Broadway in Louisville. “We appreciate all of the hard work that The Kentucky Center staff and contractors have done thus far, but because the venue must have more time to ensure the safety of our patrons, the engagement must be cancelled and we will unfortunately be unable to reschedule or relocate this production.”
“The producers of WAITRESS are appreciative of the efforts put forth by The Kentucky Center and Broadway Across America, but are extremely disappointed not to be able to bring the show to the fantastic audiences in Louisville.”
For more information from each authorized ticket source, please contact:
PNC Broadway in Louisville subscribers: 502-561-1003
The Kentucky Center single ticket buyers: 502-584-7777
Ticketmaster: 800-982-2787
A Message from Kim Baker, President and CEO of The Kentucky Center:
On Wednesday, June 13, The Kentucky Center sustained considerable damage when a fire started within its arched ceiling above the lobby. All staff and employees were immediately evacuated and there were no reported injuries.
The Kentucky Center building – including the physical Box Office – and Kentucky Center garage remain closed at this time in an effort to expedite the repair process.
Tickets for scheduled programming are available online and by phone at (502) 584-7777.
- NEWSIES update! The Floyd Central Theatre Arts’ performances of Disney’s Newsies scheduled June 22-23 at The Kentucky Center have been moved to the Floyd Central Auditorium on Thursday, June 21 at 8pm, Friday, June 22 at 8pm and Saturday, June 23 at 2pm. Tickets can be purchased at www.floydcentraltheatre.org or over the phone at (812) 542-2284. The Floyd Central Box Office will be open from 9am-9pm daily.
- ALADDIN update! Aladdin on sale Monday, 6.18.18-Due to the building closure, tickets for PNC Broadway in Louisville’s production of Aladdin can be purchased in person at the PNC Broadway in Louisville office, 620 West Main Street, as well as by phone at 502-584-7777 and online at www.kentuckycenter.org
Regarding the fire, the majority of damage appears to be from water and is primarily contained to the Main Lobby. Whitney Hall and the Bomhard Theater also sustained minor damage. We are still in the process of assessing the damage.
We are working diligently with crews to clear the damage, eliminate water from the building, and to reopen as soon as possible.
There were a handful of shows scheduled to take place in the venue in the coming days. We are thankful to a generous community outpouring of support and assistance from nearby facilities and venues (some of which have no connection to The Center) who have offered access to their spaces – and we are working closely with these groups to find alternative venues for them.
Many have asked about the condition of the Center’s permanent art collection, displayed throughout the building. Owned by The Kentucky Center Foundation, the value of the artwork in the affected area – the lobby – is estimated at $18 million. We are working with representatives from the Speed Art Museum to assess any potential damage and will report those findings when available.
This has obviously been a challenging time for our Kentucky Center family, friends, fellow arts groups and the entire community that loves this building.
I wish to thank the many men and women of the Louisville Metro Fire Department, emergency workers, and the Louisville Metro Police Department for ensuring the safety of everyone. I also want thank downtown workers and commuters for their patience as well.
We are doing everything in our power to get The Kentucky Center up and running again – and will issue an announcement soon when we expect that date to take place.
The PNC Broadway in Louisville production of WAITRESS is scheduled for June 26 through July 1. We are optimistic that – as they say – “the show will go on” – but will confirm 100% regarding that decision early next week.
Thank you for your support during this difficult time.
Pleasure Ridge Park firefighters responded to the structure fire call just after 4:30 PM Sunday in the 13000 block of Ashlawn Drive in southern Jefferson County’s Valley Station neighborhood.
Despite getting the blaze under control within 10 minutes of responding, two men inside the house were already dead. Although officials believe the cause of death to likely be due to smoke inhalation, the official cause is pending from the medical examiner.
Upon arriving, firefighters found heavy flames pouring from the kitchen area of the house. Traffic into and out of the neighborhood was blocked as the flames were extinguished and the scene was contained before being reopened later in the evening.
The two victims of the house fire are believed to have been in their 60s and 80s, respectively.
UPDATE: The names of the victims have been released. The Jefferson County Coroner’s Office confirmed that Tilden Thompson, Jr., age 88, and his son, Michael Thompson, age 59, died from smoke inhalation.
Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer and Louisville Division of Fire Chief, Colonel Gregory W. Frederick celebrated the promotion of 11 members to new positions within the Louisville Division of Fire. We wish them the best of luck in their new roles!
See below for members promoted and their new positions:
- Sgt. Michael Davis – Fire Apparatus Operator
- Sgt. Michael Enyard – Fire Apparatus Operator
- Sgt. Jelen Greene – Fire Apparatus Operator
- Sgt. James Perry – Fire Apparatus Operator
- Capt. Thomas Anderson – Company Commander
- Capt. Darrell Davis – Company Commander
- Capt. Jason Sanders – Arson Investigator II
- Capt. Chris Wahl – Company Commander
- Maj. Lawrence Graves – Battalion Chief
- Maj. Chris Jenkins – Battalion Chief – Chief of Investigations
- Maj. Chris Verdi – Battalion Chief
Residents Ordered to Shelter in Place as Thick Black Smoke Fills Area
Liberty Tire Recycling, in the 14000 block of Bohannon Dr in southwest Jefferson County, is the site of a large fire that is engulfing the area in thick, black smoke.
At around 11:20AM, area residents who have signed up for CodeRed Alert notifications received a call from PRP Fire Department advising them to shelter in place due to the large fire and billowing smoke. The message further advised to turn off HVAC systems and avoid going outside, especially for those with respiratory problems.
Louisville Dispatch was able to get some photos of the area before being turned back by LMPD personnel who are controlling access to the affected area, which is approximately two miles south of Gene Snyder at Dixie Highway. At last word, only one fire truck is on scene pumping water onto the large pile of burning shredded tires.
Citizens are urged to call 311 if they need information or to report issues regarding the fire and to only dial 911 in the case of actual, immediate emergencies. Air monitoring is in place in the area and residents are being told not to travel or evacuate unless told to do so. Officials say that the fire may burn for two days as extinguishing efforts are complicated by the fire burning from the bottom up.
More information will be posted on LouisvilleDispatch.com, as well as our Facebook and Twitter feeds, as it becomes available.
