The Bonifas Theater Fire of 2025

A lightning strike on the evening of May 15, 2025, started a fire in the theater of the Bonifas Arts Center. Thanks to the quick response of firefighters from the Escanaba, Wells Township, and Ford River Township stations, the blaze was stopped in time to prevent major structural damage to the Bonifas. However, the theater at the Bonifas will require major rehabbing, and nearly all of our equipment will need to be replaced. As Players de Noc works with the Bonifas Arts Center, insurance, and contractors to make the space usable again, Bay College has graciously offered us the use of their Besse Theater for the performances of our modified season.

As of this writing (Feb 2026), the Bonifas Arts Center has several contractors hard at work restoring the damaged Bonifas Theater. Time estimates vary on several crucial pieces of the work, and it’s currently unknown if Players will be able to open our 2026-20207 season at the Bonifas Theater.

Sept 26, 2025 – A message from the Players de Noc Board to the community:

💙🎭A Heartfelt Thank You from the Players de Noc Board to Our Community 💙🎭
The Players de Noc Board would like to take a moment to thank our membership, community volunteers, and supporters for their hard work, financial support, and dedication over the past few months as we prepared to open our first show of the 2025–26 season.
Please take a moment to celebrate and take pride in what we have been able to accomplish together. We are consistently humbled and inspired by what this organization and its community have been able to produce for over 60 years.
We know that these past months have brought stress and uncertainty, but they have also revealed the strength of our theatre family. We should all be proud of what has been—and will continue to be—accomplished under these trying circumstances.
As a board, we want everyone to know how deeply loved and appreciated you are. We look forward with gratitude and excitement to the future of theatre in Delta County.
Break a Leg Don’t Mention My Name!

Sept 19 2026 – Joint “Raise the Roof” fundraiser with the Bonifas and Players to support fire recovery efforts! A good time was had by all!

Sept. 9, 2025 – Players and the Bonifas join forces at TV6 to talk about the fire recovery efforts!

Article and video here:

https://www.uppermichiganssource.com/2025/09/09/show-must-go-how-bonifas-arts-center-players-de-noc-found-silver-lining-after-may-fire/

August 3, 2025 – Costume Shop cleaned out and organized to make room for salvaged items from the fire!

July 26, 2025 – Big workbees held to clean out and modify scene shop, to allow Players to do most of our set construction there in anticipation of our season being hosted at Bay College, where we would not have the access to do our customary “leisurely” (hahaha) builds on stage.

Big Cleanup of Theater Over Memorial Day Weekend

Video to right shows state of theater on June 16, 2026

June – August of 2025

Players holds t-shirt fundraiser sale to raise funds to offset immediate costs associated with cleanup

May 29, 2025 Joint Press Release from Players de Noc and Bay College:

Players de Noc is happy to announce that we will be performing our 2025-2026 season of plays at the Besse Theater stage at Bay College! After the lightning-strike fire at the Bonifas Arts Center earlier this month rendered our traditional performance space unusable and our equipment inoperative, Bay College has generously given us the use of their Besse Theater space for the performance of our shows while we get back on our feet. We cannot fully express just how much this support from Bay means to us both as individual members and as an organization as a whole. Bay College has our heartfelt thanks. We aim to put on productions worthy of the space they have given us, as good or better than anything Players has done previously.

Our forthcoming season at Bay’s Besse Theater will include the comedy Don’t Mention My Name, premiering the last weekend in September; a special one night performance of Ten November in honor of the 50th anniversary of the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald; a Christmas season brace of one-acts The Best Christmas Pageant Ever and The Great Christmas Cookie Bake-Off!, premiering the first weekend in December; a radio show production of It’s a Wonderful Life on Dec. 19th; and Mel Brooks’s comedic musical The Producers in March of 2026.

While Players de Noc performs at Bay College this season, we will also be working hand-in-hand with the Bonifas Arts Center and licensed contractors to rehabilitate the Bonifas theater. With a little luck and a lot of hard work, we hope to be performing for you all at our home theater in our 2026-2027 season.

Those eager to support us after this disaster can donate to both Players de Noc and the Bonifas Arts Center (keep an eye out for announcements of joint fundraising events we will be hosting!), participate in workbees announced on our Facebook page, and most of all, come see our plays at the Bay College Besse Theater this season!”

Bay College President Dr. Nerita Hughes said of the partnership, “Bay College is honored to provide a temporary home to Players de Noc. As the community’s college, we are proud to be a part of the effort to sustain and celebrate the rich heritage of local performing arts. We look forward to an inspiring season of resilience, collaboration, and outstanding theater together.

How can I help?

We’ve been overwhelmed by the support from our community and friends in dealing with the aftermath of the theater fire, and several people have reached out asking what they can do to help. In that vein, here are some of the ways you can support Players:

  • Workbees: Players arranges days for volunteers to come together and work on specific, big tasks. Check out our social media pages or this website for announcements about upcoming ones, or contact us via the contact form at the bottom of any page on our website to get info on the next one
  • Donations: You can donate to Players via several methods. Check out our donation page
  • Reach out to us with ideas: You might have a great idea we haven’t even thought of yet! Or maybe you have a contact who would be helpful to our recovery efforts. Reach out to us via the contact form at the bottom of any page on our website if you think of something that might help us in our recovery work.