Theater of the Stars, the 61-year-old Atlanta troupe that canceled its season in August and ceased operations in September, has filed for bankruptcy.
The long-expected Chapter 7 filing offers a striking glimpse of the severe financial trouble the city’s longest-running theater had encountered.
Appointed trustee in mid-November, attorney Barbara Stalzer said Wednesday that it is too early to tell if subscribers and other creditors might eventually receive some portion of what they are owed.
“In terms of hard assets, I don’t know,” she said. “But I’ve got research to do. I have to look at all the books, records, all the accounts. It’s just beginning.”
The filing indicates that Theater of the Stars had been reeling even after an anonymous donor gave the troupe $3 million to clear accumulated red ink in 2011.
The papers list liabilities totaling nearly $1.98 million with assets of $222,286.
More than 775 season subscribers, owed several hundred to several thousand dollars, have been notified of the filing. Their claims total $1.2 million.
Others listed as holding unsecured claims include banks, the Fox Theatre, landlords, utilities and marketing companies. Several credit card debts are listed, including amounts alternately listed as $143,101 and $199,194 in the name of TOTS producing director Christopher B. Manos.
The theater’s bankruptcy attorney, Dale Goodman, declined comment Wednesday on the discrepancy or about what the American Express charges were for.
One of the theater’s bank accounts is listed as holding $130,000, while several others have zero balances.
The recession made operating funds hard to raise and debt easy to accrue. Meanwhile, formidable competitor Broadway in Atlanta secured the hottest musicals from the Great White Way. And though TOTS was a nonprofit, it did not aggressively pursue government and foundation grants even as ticket sales declined, theater leaders acknowledged last summer.
“As a longtime season ticket patron who supported TOTS through good times and bad, I feel hurt and betrayed by the bankruptcy filing,” said Bob Barrineau, who runs an Atlanta advertising and marketing firm. “The whole thing is such a sad ending to TOTS and Christopher Manos’ legacy.”
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