A layer of soot covers the floor where crowds of college students and urban professionals would drink beer and thrill to comedy and good, old-fashioned rock ‘n’ roll.The Shadowbox Cabaret has canceled its shows indefinitely as they continue to assess the damages from a fire which swept through the back of its performance theatre on 236 E. Spring St. early Monday morning.The Columbus Fire Department confirmed today that an electrical short started the fire.Structural damage is too severe for any further performances, said Julie Klein, the Cabaret’s general manager. “We thought we’d at least be able to do shows, but it’s not going to happen,” Klein said. The theater company still plans to open their new Easton Town Center club as scheduled on June 30, she said.Meanwhile, members of the performance troupe continued to sift through debris, trying to salvage what they could.Mary Randle, technical advisor for the Cabaret, tried to wipe the soot off her upper lip, then gave up.”This is very disheartening,” she said. “You kind of don’t want to get the thought that now you’re homeless.”The fire department originally estimated the Cabaret’s loss at $45,000, but the Cabaret’s insurance company, Indiana Insurance, has now estimated up to $250,000 in damages, said Steve Guyer, the theater company’s president.”It melted the computers. It melted the archives. It melted the computer records,” he said.Guyer said that the insurance would cover the expenses, but without income from performances, there would be no way to cover the Cabarets $80,000 monthly expenses. He hoped that the Cabaret would be able to find other places to perform until June, but he was too busy directing the salvage to consider the options.”I’m not sure which direction we’re going to go,” he said.Guyer was determined, however, that the fire would not bring the Cabaret down.”There is no way in hell this is going to stop us,” Guyer said. “People have been great too. We have already received $10,000. It is awesome that there are so many people who are willing to help us.”Guyer was dozing in his office the night of the fire.”When I first saw the fire, I thought all was lost,” he said.Guyer crawled past the fire wall, into the general performance area, which was much better.”There was no phone there, though,” he said. Guyer had to run down an alley in his bare feet to Fire Station 1 on N. 4th St. “It’s only been recently that I’ve come to terms of the greatness of what happened here, the disaster,” he said.Guyer hoped that people will be able to come in the future and enjoy the Cabaret’s performance.The Shadowbox Fire Fund can be reached at 224-9262.