Performer injured from falling set piece during 'Les Mis' at the Morris Performing Arts Center

SOUTH BEND, Ind.-- A falling set piece injured an actor and shocked the audience Thursday night at the Morris Performing Arts Center during a performance of Les Misérables.

Two audience members, one from Goshen, one from St. Joseph, told ABC57 what they saw and heard during the musical.

"This thing just fell from the ceiling and crashed on the floor. It was a pretty big metal thing, I'm not sure what it was," said Deb Crothers, who attended Thursday's performance with her husband as a belated anniversary celebration. "Everybody just kind of stopped, there should have been applause for the big Number, and everybody was-- it was dead silent. And like, 'Did that just happen?' So, the curtain came down, and eventually someone came on and said there would be a delay in the show."

"The performers just kind of stopped mid-song, and you could see that something had-- part of the structure had fallen," said Kelly Roche, who was also in Thursday's audience. "The performers rushed off stage... then the curtains went down, and the lights came on. The lack of communication was very challenging as an audience member. People were getting up out of their seats, coming back, not sure what to expect."

A city spokesperson told ABC57 the fallen stage piece was not equipment owned by the Morris Performing Arts Center. It was instead part of the production set owned and operated by the American Theater Guild.

Audience members say they waited about an hour after the curtains were drawn. The American Theater Guild says the show stop was about 40 minutes. An intercom announcement told the audience there were technical difficulties and there would be a delay.

As they say on Broadway, the show must go on.

Eventually, the company finished act one, which was only a couple more songs, then the show went into its regular intermission, then act two went off without a hitch.

That didn’t happen until some folks had already left the theater, not knowing if the show was going to continue, despite the announcements.

The American Theater Guild sent ABC57 the following statement:

"Due to a technical difficulty, there was a show stop at [Thursday's] performance of Les Misérables at the Morris Performing Arts Center. As it is of the utmost importance for the safety of the show’s cast, crew, orchestra and staff, there was a 40-minute show hold to ensure everything was in proper working order before the production continued without further issue. A company member sustained a minor injury and was released later [Thursday] night. We thank the audience for their patience last night, and we look forward to the remaining performances for South Bend audiences. The performance of Les Misérables will go on as scheduled tonight."