ABOVE: Blake Potthoff, Executive Director of the Fairmont Opera House, has also been named the Acting Executive Director of the Red Rock Center for the Arts and the Chubb House, formally the Martin County Preservation Association.

FAIRMONT- Blake Potthoff, Executive Director of the Fairmont Opera House, has also been named the Acting Executive Director of the Martin County Preservation Association (MCPA), which was established in 1992 and includes the Red Rock Center for the Arts and the Chubb House. The two board of directors formed a leadership collaboration in an effort to strengthen the arts as a whole in the community.

For 10 years Potthoff has served as Executive Director of the Fairmont Opera House. At just 34 years old, he said the responsibility of taking over another organization with an important and rich history is not lost on him.

“It never has been at the Opera House. I started when I was 25 and there’s been a lot of learning. There’s been mistakes and wins but my goal is to make sure that the people who are on the board of directors that hired me do not regret that decision because they could have hired somebody else. To be in this position when I’m now taking on responsibility of a second organization with a similar mission, it is very humbling,” Potthoff said.

He added that he’s gathered the experience through a significant amount of work and that he’s looking forward to continuing work with the Fairmont Opera House while also doing fantastic things with the Red Rock and Chubb House in this new capacity as well.

“It’s humbling but I’m understanding of the immense responsibility that comes with the history and expectations of the community and the donors. There’s plenty of pressure with it, but it’s definitely exciting and humbling,” he said.

ABOVE: The Red Rock Center for the Arts in Fairmont.

Conversations about the leadership collaboration between the two boards had been in the works for the past few months before the announcement was made on Thursday. Carol Justice, Board Chair of the MCPA, said that the Opera House Board of Directors had approached them about the idea in the spirit of sharing resources. The MCPA has been without a director since early November of 2025.

“We were looking at all of our considerations. Legally we don’t have to post the position, but we had candidates we looked at. We went with what was presented to us. It was the best solution for the Martin County Preservation Association,” Justice said.

Potthoff said that when the idea was laid out before him, he was appreciative of the trust that both boards were placing in him.

“It’s exciting. Both of these organizations do a lot of fantastic things in the community and there’s a lot of opportunity for collaboration,” he said. “I think that getting an opportunity like this in Fairmont is really cool. To be doing what I’ve been doing for a decade at the Opera House, and expanding that role and helping out another organization with its programming is really exciting. I’m really looking forward to it.”

ABOVE: The historic Chubb House in Fairmont.

When asked if he feels like the two organizations have been or will be put in a position where it feels like competition, Potthoff said he’s never viewed the MCPA, specifically the Red Rock, as competitors in anything more than competing for time.

“As organizations, we all compete with things like being outside, spending time with family and Netflix. There’s only 24 hours in a day. When we have something scheduled at the Opera House or the Red Rock, we’re competing for hours in a day and limited financial resources that people have. That’s really the only way we’re competitors,” he said.

Potthoff pointed out that the Opera House and Red Rock have many differences, one of which is size. The Opera House seats 500 people and has a 1,800 sq. tf. stage. The Red Rock seats about 50 to 150 people.

“The programming opportunities are different,” he explained. “In that respect I don’t see them as competitors but as complementary facilities that are working to accomplish similar missions in the community.”

In a press release put out on Thursday, the Fairmont Opera House Board of Directors stressed that the new agreement will not affect the organization’s ongoing capital campaign to repair, reopen and restore the Fairmont Opera House, which has been closed to the public since October 2023. Potthoff also shared that he remains very committed to the Opera House, its capital campaign and its future.

ABOVE: The Fairmont Opera House.

All groups will maintain their own independence in the new leadership collaboration and look forward to sharing resources and talent.

“We’re not combining boards. We’re still separate boards. We are sharing Blake,” Justice said. “Blake is going to bring serious talent. It’s going to bring the force of the arts to Fairmont. Once the Opera House is up (and running) we’ll have two beautiful buildings in Fairmont and we’ll have fantastic ratings for hosting events.”

She pointed out that Potthoff has already been doing much of the job the Red Rock would require so he would not need much training. She added that he already knows how to look for the arts and look for grant opportunities.