The show will go on.
D.C.’s GALA Hispanic Theatre has been a staple of the Latino community for more than four decades. There were real fears it all could come to an end after a debilitating bank hack robbed them of more than $250,000, as News4 was first to report.
After News4’s story aired and the news spread in the community, there was a major breakthrough: The theater’s bank told them they restored the funds.
Theater co-founder Rebecca Medrano describes the moment she got the good news.
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“I couldn’t hear and I said, ‘Excuse me?’ And then I just screamed and I wanted to let all of the staff and artists know. Everybody is just so thankful and grateful and relieved,” she said.
The theater on 14th Street in Columbia Heights halted operations and struggled to stay afloat after the hack to their Citibank account. Medrano had been told it could take eight months to get the funds back, which she called a death sentence for the nonprofit.
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Medrano said she was frustrated with Citibank at first but now thanks them for restoring the funds.
Citibank said in a statement to News4: “We appreciate how difficult it can be for an organization to be defrauded. While the circumstances of each case are different, upon careful review we’re pleased to honor this claim and credit our client with its lost funds.”
Medrano thanked News4.
“I know the difference is the media and the public pressure,” she said. “It was incredibly supportive, especially [since] NBC 4 was there first.”
She also thanked the community, which donated more than $60,000, which GALA had been using as emergency funds to keep operating.
“I just think we should all share in this joyous moment that we are being made whole again,” she said.
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Now the focus shifts back to center stage at GALA, where their next show is set to open on Feb. 1
The FBI and Secret Service are still trying to track down who’s responsible for the fraudulent wire transfer.
