The Ohio Theater, a place I'd rank as New York's premiere 99 seat house, is in deep trouble.
The building's owners are selling and the space where I built Fatboy and Captain Overlord's Folly, the place that has hosted Clubbed Thumb, the Ice Factory, Pig Iron and the Riot Group, Les Freres Corbusier, WOW International, Inverse and hundreds of other Off-Off and international companies will be re-fitted to sell shoes or coats or some other fine retail merchandise.
We need a sane arts space policy in this city.
We need to honor the history and contributions of Off-Off or independent theater and we need to do that concretely, by preserving the theaters and providing stability and continuity to the theater owners and operators.
Off-Off is a 60 year old sector; a national treasure recognized globally as an innovative engine driving American theater forward. It's where so much of it begins, where so many get their start.
If you keep closing laboratories, where does the research get done?
If you sell the farmland, where do you get your produce?
If you dam the river's source, what happens downstream?
This is a matter of common sense, civic pride and cultural preservation.
And it's only a matter of time before another fortress falls.
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1 comment:
Great post. It reminds me of someone who responds to water pollution by stating "Why should I care about water pollution? If I need water I can just turn on the faucet."
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