Mill Mountain Theatre, once the flagship of Roanoke's thriving arts and cultural community, is shutting its doors, board members announced Tuesday.

The theater, which has large and apparently mounting debts, has cancelled at least the rest of this season. Its last play will be "Driving Miss Daisy," which runs through Feb. 8 on the Waldron Stage, assuming the theater can meet production costs. The play is scheduled to open tonight.

"We're trying to collect the funds to do 'Driving Miss Daisy,' " theater board member Jason Bingham said. "We've been working hard over the last couple of months. This is just gut-wrenching, heartbreaking. What happened is 10 years of debt, of declining revenues, most likely attributable to the current economy, have made it impossible to continue. We just don't have the cash flow."

A Mill Mountain news release said the theater was shutting its doors effective today, except for scheduled performances of "Driving Miss Daisy," to "focus on a reorganization of the theater's productions and business operations. Our traditional business model no longer works."

"We're optimistic about opening it up again," Bingham said, but he couldn't give a target date. "There isn't one right now."

Bingham said the theater would "most likely" declare bankruptcy. He also apologized to creditors and customers, and said he was hopeful of the community's future support.

Staffers were told of the decision to shutter the 40-year-old theater at Tuesday's regularly scheduled 2 p.m. meeting.

Some described a dramatic scene in which the meeting was interrupted by six or seven board members filing in. The staffers said they were told they would be laid off immediately but would be paid through Friday.

The fate of benefits such as health insurance was not immediately clear.

Rumors about the theater's financial troubles have been swirling for months, if not years.

Asked recently about rumors the theater might actually close its doors, board member and past President John Light said, "We're working hard to keep this going. There is no news. But we're working through some difficult times."

The theater's artistic director, Patrick Benton, was asked the same question earlier this month and replied, "Not to my knowledge."

Yet it's no secret the theater has gone through tough times. Board members confirmed close to $600,000 in

debts in 2006. Bingham declined to give a figure for the theater's debts on Tuesday, but verified they haven't gone down. Others said the theater's debt load could be as high as three-quarters of a million dollars.

Center in the Square, which is raising money for a $20 million-plus renovation, will proceed as if the theater will be part of it, Center President Jim Sears said.

"We will have space for Mill Mountain Theatre," he said. "It's possible to reorganize it in all sorts of ways. I think out of those possibilities will come a stronger theater."

Attempts to reach Benton on Tuesday were unsuccessful. Staffers said he left halfway through Tuesday's meeting with board members and did not return.

Benton's Facebook page on Tuesday afternoon said:

"Patrick Benton is sorry, Very, very sad and sorry."

A few hours after the announcement, Mill Mountain staffers were still loading up personal belongings. Several looked stunned.

"It was a shocker," said education director Ginger Poole, still sitting at her desk about 5 p.m. Poole said she was "absolutely" surprised by the news. "I think it's devastating, not just for us but for the community."

Development director Daria Goode predicted people would show up the rest of the week to wrap up myriad loose ends, despite being told on Tuesday they were out of a job.

"Were not the kind of people who just get up and walk out the door."