Pictured: Hurricane Ian caused major damage to the historic Venice Theatre. Photo courtesy of the city of Venice.

Hurricane Ian has brought untold damage to Florida’s Gulf Coast after it made landfall on Wednesday afternoon. While the full extent of the damage is still unknown, one local landmark, the historic Venice Theatre, was not exempt from the gale-force winds. The Category 5 hurricane, which is by far the strongest storm to hit the Gulf Coast in recent history, slammed the area with 150 mile-per-hour winds and torrential rainfall leading to catastrophic damage and flooding. The Venice Theatre, which is the largest community theater in the country per capita, and had just opened its 73rd season, suffered some of the worst that Hurricane Ian had to offer to its three-building property. “Our building has catastrophic damage,” said Benny Sato Ambush, Artistic Director of the Venice Theatre. "From the photos, it looks like the roof has been ripped off of the Fly House, the backstage area of the big theater. Since it’s wide open, I’m imagining that the wind and water has flooded inside as well.”

Ahead of the tropical storm, the Venice Theatre had canceled their final week of The Revolutionists and suspended rehearsals for three other upcoming performances, including Kinky Boots. Ambush, who evacuated to Florida’s other coast with four guest actors from out of town, is unsure of the extent of the damage. “Some of my colleagues stayed and hunkered down. I'm getting reports of significant damage to the building but I’m also trying to see if I still have a house standing. The ground zero bullseye of where it hit is just to the south of us–there’s flooding and debris everywhere, power outages, cell phone towers are down, it’s just a mess. I’m staying away till I know it’s safe enough to go back,” says Ambush. “The actors staying with me had temporary housing situations and we’re trying to see what kind of shape those are in.”

Pictured: Hurricane Ian caused major damage to the historic Venice Theatre. Photo courtesy of the city of Venice.