Daily Herald opinion: ‘Its final curtain’: Small but scrappy Steel Beam Theatre in St. Charles will be missed

A small but scrappy St. Charles theater that staged dramas, comedies and even musicals for nearly 25 years closed recently with little fanfare.

The move was announced in a social media post in late February.

“After twenty-four years of incredible storytelling,” read a Facebook post, “Steel Beam Theatre has officially lowered its final curtain, closing out a chapter full of countless memories, and in its place, allowing a new chapter to start.”

The announcement went on to express gratitude for the “countless artists, volunteers, patrons, supporters and families who helped make Steel Beam Theatre a vibrant part of the St. Charles arts community,” staff writer Barbara Vitello reported today in her Spotlight theater column.

We are sorry to see Steel Beam go.

The intimate theater, named for the beam that contractors installed to support the structure and construct a stage, was founded by Donna Steele. She came upon the space in 1999 and opened it two years later to stage productions featuring mainly local artists. She served as artistic director for the theater until 2015.

Steel Beam never had the draw — or the budgets — of better-known professional suburban theater companies. Its second-floor space at 111 W. Main St. was tiny, its staging modest. The theater’s reach was dwarfed by local equity musical theater powerhouses including Paramount Theatre in Aurora and other suburban companies such as Buffalo Theatre Ensemble in Glen Ellyn.

But in its more than two decades of operation, the St. Charles theater staged some impressive productions, launched a children’s theater and even ventured into edgier and newer works. And it offered yet another outlet for theater lovers who did not want to venture into Chicago — or pay big bucks for tickets and parking — but still wanted to experience live theater and grab dinner at one of many restaurants nearby.

For that reason and others, Steel Beam will be missed.

The theater will be replaced by The Fox Youth Stage, which Vitello reported will focus on youth “programming that nurtures creativity, confidence, collaboration and, most importantly, a genuine love for the arts within the young performers throughout our communities.”

It’s a wonderful goal, and we hope it succeeds in sharing a passion for the arts with families throughout the region.

Still, we hate to see the curtain come down on any theater. Steel Beam gave work to many theater artists over the years, staged a variety of thought-provoking productions and made its mark on the community.

Farewell, Steel Beam. And thank you.