BAYarts, Metroparks Celebrate Phase 2 of former Huntington Playhouse Restoration

An integral part of the BAYarts campus in Huntington Reservation of the Cleveland Metroparks is BAYarts Playhouse, formerly Huntington Playhouse.

BAYarts Playhouse celebrated a significant milestone in its restoration last night with the ribbon-cutting for its second phase of renewal.

“A heartfelt thank you to our incredible community for making the ribbon cutting for Phase 2 of our Playhouse Auditorium renovation such a memorable event! Your support means the world to us,” says BAYarts.

“A special thanks to Cleveland Metroparks CEO Brian Zimmerman and Bay Village Mayor Paul Koomar for your inspiring remarks and unwavering support.
“We couldn’t have reached this milestone without the dedication of BAYarts Executive Director Nancy Heaton, Associate Director and Playhouse Project Manager Beth Milli, and BAYarts Board President Mary Conway Sullivan. Your hard work and passion have brought this vision to life. Here’s to many more celebrations in our newly transformed space!”

The Huntington Playhouse was established in 1958 and sits on the site of John Huntington’s carriage house. It started as a small summer theater and grew into a place with a 240-seat auditorium. The Playhouse had its last season in 2015. In the summer of 2017 BAYarts began working to clean out the venue. The goal of BAYarts is to renovate the former Playhouse, so it can be used on the arts campus for a wide range of cultural programming.

The first phase of renovations was completed in January of 2019 and included new electrical and fire safety systems. Improvements also included new bathrooms and windows, and drywall in the Hearth Room (previously the space used for intermission). BAYarts currently uses the renovated west end of the building for classes, concerts, and as community meeting room.

A second phase of renovations was completed in the summer of 2024, in which the auditorium was transformed into a multi-use space with the capacity to host concerts, plays, speakers, and more. The flexible event space will also be used for larger classes, weddings, and corporate events. BAYarts received a $500,000 grant from the Ohio Facilities Construction Committee (OFCC) and raised an additional $500,000 to begin Phase Two.

Further renovations to the building include the addition of two music rooms, a large classroom, a second set of bathrooms and a central hallway to facilitate accessibility throughout the building. Fundraising is ongoing for the next phase of improvements.

For more information on how you can donate, please contact Mary Conway Sullivan at mary@bayarts.net or Nancy Heaton at nancy@bayarts.net.