100 Seats in 100 Days

The Morgantown High School Foundation is in the final stages of a capital campaign that will bring a beloved venue back for the community.

In May, 1940, as war intensified in Europe, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt made a whirlwind visit to northern West Virginia. Among her stops: Morgantown High School, to dedicate the new $100,000 auditorium, part of a $1 million federal Public Works Administration school building program in Monongalia County.

The auditorium was built just in time for a teenage Don Knotts, an enthusiastic ventriloquist at the time and a member of the class of 1942, to get on-stage experience there. Beyond budding MHS stars, over the following decade alone, the new auditorium hosted performances by students from other schools in the community, the celebrated operatic soprano Eileen Farrell, the St. Louis Sinfonietta as part of a community concert series, and even the meeting of 600 delegates to the state Industrial Union Council.

Don Knotts isn’t the only high-caliber performer to come out of MHS. Lawrence Kasdan ’66 was screenwriter for Raiders of the Lost Ark and director of The Big Chill. There were Peter Wilson ’86, a Marine Violinist of The White House for 30 years, serving five presidents—Trevor Dion Nicholas ’01, known for stage roles as the Genie in Aladdin and George Washington in Hamilton—and others. 

But 85 years after Mrs. Roosevelt’s dedication, it’s been a decade since most of us have set foot inside the storied performance hall.

“Honestly, it’s unusable,” says Mark J. Nesselroad, treasurer of the Morgantown High School Foundation and a 2001 alum, of the auditorium’s state of long-deferred maintenance. Peeling plaster and broken seats are only the most obvious problems. The stage is too small for modern productions in a school of MHS’s size, and there’s no ADA access. The stage rigging and sound booth equipment are outdated. And, at this point, none of the lights work—and there isn’t even a catwalk for changing the light bulbs safely.

For over a decade, Nesselroad says, MHS theater productions, the school’s annual county-wide Mohigan Idol charity talent show that raises money for WVU Medicine Children’s, and other shows have taken place at the Metropolitan Theatre. “It costs almost $20,000 a year for the school system, specifically Morgantown High, to use the Met for its performances,” he says. “And it’s not just the funding—it’s lugging all of the equipment and props off-site, both for practices, if they want good lighting, and also for performances.” 

The necessity of shifting assemblies that could take place in the auditorium to other locations in the school building also puts a strain on other activities—using one of the school’s two gymnasiums instead, for example, affects athletics.  

And the auditorium’s condition has also put an end to use by the wider community, Nesselroad points out. “Back when I was in school, there would be dance troupes coming in and other community members using the auditorium,” he says. “It used to be used as a voting location, but the community can’t do that anymore. We can’t have reunion get-togethers in there, we can’t have debates—there are a lot of things that could go on that just can’t.”

Now, the MHS Foundation has a plan to restore the auditorium to its former splendor with modern updates, and it’s reaching out to the community in the final stages of a $4.4 million capital campaign.

“Upgrades include all new plaster, paint, and carpet, and new, wider seats,” Nesselroad says. “We’d increase the stage capacity. We’d have an orchestra area at the stage level and a new sound booth at the stage level—right now it’s way up in the balcony—with new equipment.” There would be new and renovated restrooms, renovated dressing rooms, better lighting and lighting access, a new AV system, and ADA access for audience and performers. “It’s a nice, complete renovation, while keeping a lot of the historical character.”

The foundation is just $150,000 short of its fundraising goal, Nesselroad says. Its “100 Seats in 100 Days” appeal, going on through December 31, invites alumni and community members to support the effort: a $500 donation earns a permanent seat plaque. 

But no amount is too small or too large. “Whether it’s $5 or a seat for $500 or a row for $5,000 or naming rights to one of the larger donation items, everything helps and counts,” Nesselroad says.

He looks forward to bringing the auditorium back as a resource for MHS students and the community. “MHS has a tradition of excellence that speaks for itself,” he says. “I can only think of the hidden talent at MHS that maybe doesn’t have a stage to perform on, and that this auditorium could open some doors and mean the world for some of those students, whether they go on to be performing arts professionals or just create awesome memories. That’s our goal—for the No. 1 high school in the state to have a usable auditorium that meets a lot of people’s needs.” 

To learn more and donate, visit the foundation’s Facebook page, call 304.413.0497, or mail to Morgantown High School Foundation, P.O. Box 1431, Morgantown WV 26507.

This story was edited on November 7 to correct Peter Wilson’s career experience.

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