An arts consultant has been asked to answer a question that's been on a lot of minds for several years now.

Can the Royal Poinciana Playhouse, dark since 2004, be re-opened as a successful performing arts venue? If so, how best to perform that task?

The Royal Poinciana Plaza's new leadership said it has hired Duncan Webb of Webb Management Services in New York for an assessment of the Playhouse's future.

A group of local investors assumed control of the plaza from Sidney Spiegel on April 1. The new leadership has pledged to revitalize the 12-acre site — which has faded as a retail attraction — and improve its appearance.

The group recently hired Boston architect Ann Beha and Boston-Palm Beach landscape architect Morgan Wheelock to design a redevelopment plan for presentation to the Town Council in November.

Brian Kosoy, CEO of The Sterling Organization and co-leader of the group that controls the plaza, said Webb's analysis will help shape the development plan for the plaza. He said Webb will deliver his report in August to Beha, who specializes in theater preservation and architecture.

"He is expert in examining the audience for theaters and preferences of towns for the performing arts," Beha said of Webb. "He will give you an honest, balanced assessment."

Webb's company is in its 12th year and has performed more than 40 cultural feasibility studies for performing arts buildings in Florida, Webb said.

He is a former theater producer and presenter and holds an MBA from the University of Toronto.

Webb's job is to sort through the emotional sentiment and agendas surrounding the Playhouse and decide what will actually work, Kosoy said.

"We want the real answer," he said.

Webb was in town this week talking to the plaza ownership, Town Council members, leaders of cultural organizations, the Palm Beach Theater Guild and others.

Webb said he has reached out to all the major arts and cultural organizations, including Florida Stage, Palm Beach Dramaworks, the Kravis Center, the Palm Beach Symphony, Ballet Florida and Palm Beach Opera.

"We've done about 20 interviews in total and have about 20 more to do by phone in the next two weeks," he said.

Part of his analysis will be to evaluate the business plan put forward by the Palm Beach Theater Guild, which wants to lease the theater as a performing arts venue.

Local experts have said the guild's plan lacks details, relies on speculation, and that the group has not conducted a study to assess market demand and fundraising potential.

Webb said he will cover market demand and demographics while being mindful of Palm Beach's "town-serving" rule, which would require that at least 50 percent of the Playhouse's patrons be town residents.

Webb said he is looking at three models for the Playhouse's future: "sensible use" with minor modifications to the building; "sensible use" with major modifications; and the possibility of a broader cultural arts/entertainment use that would not include the existing building.

"The only precondition is that it must be financially and economically feasible and town-serving," he said.

The biggest blow to the once-thriving Playhouse was the loss of its Broadway business to the Kravis Center, Webb said. Those national tours won't be back, so a re-opened Playhouse would have to adapt.

Another big problem is the deterioration of the building, which might cost millions of dollars to renovate.

"Certainly the building is in crummy shape," Webb said. "That is a significant deterrent to anybody coming in there."

Even so, Webb said he is cautiously optimistic the theater can come back, albeit with a different, broader programming menu that might include lectures and films.

"It's likely that there is an answer and that it involves a facility that can do a lot of different things and support a range of programs," Webb said.

The 878-seat venue, designed by John Volk in 1957, is being considered, along with the rest of the plaza, for landmark protection. Landmarking does not govern the use of a building, however.

The council has said it will decide the landmark question in November.