Del Mar College cancels Richardson Hall events due to safety concerns, affecting local performances and celebrations.

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Del Mar College has canceled all events scheduled at the Richardson Performance Hall on the Heritage Campus.

May is typically packed with showcases, ceremonies and end-of-semester celebrations, making this a busy time on campus, but these events have been canceled due to a safety concern.

Alcorta’s Compañía de Danza Folklórica was set to stage its spring production, “Inoviable,” this Friday.

“All of our dancers were sad. The amount of work that goes in as a dancer to do an event like this — the countless hours we were here on weekends from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. — I mean, we’re dedicating our whole days,” said Sasha Alcorta, assistant director at the studio.

Samuel Alcorta, the studio’s artistic director, said preparations have been in the works for months.

“It’s the only full-scale folklórico dance production in our Coastal Bend, South Texas area. We have a lot of people who come in from across Texas, different parts of the U.S. and Mexico just to see this show. One of our special projects is our student matinee, where we fill the Richardson auditorium with as many K-12 students as possible so they can experience the arts live,” Samuel said.

Now, they’re scrambling to find a solution.

“On top of the student matinee component, and not just the community performance, there are a lot of logistics involved — figuring out how our first event, the student show, is going to be resolved, because it’s a field trip that these kids take,” Samuel said.

3News reached out to Del Mar College about the reason behind the cancellations. Below is its statement:

“Earlier this week, we noticed fallen debris and cracking on the back wall of the stage area in Richardson Auditorium and made the decision to cancel events while we assess the condition of the building and identify what repairs need to be made. The safety of our students, employees and community is our top priority.

“We apologize for the disruption to our community and look forward to reopening the space as soon as it is safe to do so. We will share additional updates as more information becomes available.

“We are working directly with individuals and organizations that had events scheduled in Richardson Auditorium to find alternative options, including other available spaces on campus and other suitable venues.

“Many of the affected events are internal, and our teams are coordinating next steps to minimize disruption. We do not have a final count of impacted events at this time, but we are in communication with all parties involved.”

For the folklórica group, they’re not giving up — the show must go on.

“We are pending a contract with a new venue and a new date. The ticketing system will shift over, but everybody who currently has a ticket will have it honored for the new date,” Samuel said.

Del Mar College said it will reopen the space as soon as it is safe to do so.