Problems were discovered during routine checks Wednesday afternoon, when "the revolve was responding very, very erratically," PTC artistic director Charles Morey said. "The computer was telling it to do one thing, and it was doing other things entirely. Things were wildly messed up."
Stage crews worked to solve the malfunction before the show's 7:30 p.m. curtain, which was sold out, but safety concerns caused stage manager Jeffrey Williams to cancel the show, thought to be only the second cancellation in the theater's 45-year history.
The malfunction might have been due to a short blackout earlier in the week at the University of Utah, which apparently burned out a computer chip in the theater's operating system. That was replaced along with other components, Morey said.
Patrons' tickets were refunded, or rescheduled for later in the run when seats are available, Morey said. To reschedule, ticketholders should call the theater box office at 801-581-6961.
Technical difficulties serious enough to cancel a show are rare. An accident shortly before intermission during the February 2006 run of "Aida" at West Valley City's Hale Centre Theatre injured a stage hand, causing the rest of the night's show to be called off.
- Ellen Fagg
