The Corinth Theatre-Arts eviction appears to be final. The community theater group has lost its appeal of the City of Corinth’s effort to remove it from the city-owned playhouse on South Fulton Drive, the Daily Corinthian reported Wednesday. The doors at 303 South Fulton Drive are now locked, and signs on the glass read, “No trespassing by order from the City of Corinth.”
The “now playing” and “coming soon” displays outside the building were empty Tuesday afternoon, according to the newspaper. The structure, once known as the fairgrounds exhibition building, has been home to Corinth Theatre-Arts (CT-A) for nearly 60 years.
How the Corinth Theatre-Arts eviction case unfolded
The dispute between the city and the theater group has played out for close to a year, first at City Hall and then in the courts:
Nov. 18: In an executive session, the Corinth Board of Mayor and Aldermen voted to evict CT-A from the Fulton Drive property and gave the group 90 days to leave.
Justice Court: The city won its eviction case in Alcorn County Justice Court.
May 29: After CT-A appealed, Circuit Judge Kelly Mims stayed the Justice Court judgment and barred the city from enforcing it while the appeal was pending.
Sept. 24: The appeal was set for a non-jury trial in Alcorn County Circuit Court.
With the appeal now decided against the theater group, the city has secured the building. The full terms of the circuit court’s ruling, and whether CT-A plans any further legal action, were not immediately available Wednesday evening.
Why the city wanted the theater group out
City officials have said citizens raised concerns about how the theater operated, but no specific complaints have been made public. When the fight became public in early June, the group’s then-executive director told WTVA that city leaders had said the move was not about money and had not accused the group of being bad tenants. He also said the theater was selling record numbers of tickets at the time.
The building holds decades of theater history, including photos of past directors and other memorabilia collected since the group first began staging shows there.
What’s next for Corinth Theatre-Arts
CT-A’s leadership has changed since the eviction fight began. The group’s Facebook page now lists a nine-member board of directors led by President James Strachan, and in a recent post the board said that “recent events have brought change” to the organization but that its mission remains to provide a place where the performing arts can thrive.
The group has not publicly announced where it will stage future productions. Corinth still has other live-performance venues, including the historic Corinth Coliseum downtown and the Crossroads Arena.
Alcorn County News will update this story as more information about the ruling, the future of the Fulton Drive building, and CT-A’s next season becomes available.
Jon R Myers is the executive editor of Alcorn County News and the founder of the Mississippi News Group, which he started in 2013 to cover communities across North Mississippi. He also founded the Mississippi Sports Group in 2006, which grew from a single community publication into a statewide network covering high school and college athletics. He reports on local government, public safety, schools and community life in Corinth and Alcorn County, working from public meetings, agency records and interviews with the people involved. Contact him at editor@alcornnewsms.com with news tips or corrections. For a correction, include the article link and supporting source material.
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