First, I'll make a long story short, then attempt to explain at length why I think the long story should be important to you.

 

 

I recently met with Kat Sparks, a commercial real estate professional and avid theater practitioner. She has access to rehearsal spaces in buildings that are managed by the company she works for. I looked at the spaces and determined that when they are available - i.e., not being used by Ms. Sparks - their location, square footage and creature comforts would overcome the objections that some have lodged against spaces that I have investigated in my effort to mitigate the loss (in Mar. of 2018) to the theater community of my studio at 5555 N. Lamar. The companies that rehearsed in Austin Playwrights Studio over the last 2+ years will have access for the foreseeable future to facilities approximately equal in features to APS. These in addition to rehearsal studios recently offered by the Rude Mechs in the Austin American Statesman warehouse on S. Congress. And even more recently, an outfit called Sky Candy is offering more spaces, some of them much, much larger than my studio. Don't yet know about the pricing.

 

At roughly the same time as our discussion, I committed to a 3-year lease of a warehouse space of approximately 1500 sq. ft., located just north of Ms. Sparks building, which is in the Colonnade Center on the corner of Burnet Rd. and Research Blvd. As soon as I take possession of this raw warehouse space, and while I am preparing it for uses which I have in mind, I intend to offer it AND Austin Playwrights Studio's current rehearsal space on a pay-what-you-can basis to groups who will be rehearsing pieces for Frontera Fest. 

 

I will attempt to make the new Austin Playwrights Studio as convenient and comfortable as I can, and will again seek the approval of AEA for use as a rehearsal and/or audition space for Equity productions. I don't think, however, that it can ever quite duplicate - in terms of features, climate control, etc. - the APS to which certain renters/users have become accustomed or the new spaces which have just come onto the (so-called) market. On the other hand, what it will necessarily lack in this area it will hopefully make up for in greater square footage, adaptability to different performance venue stage configurations, ability to accomodate workshop productions for select audiences (i.e. backers' auditions), etc. In other words, it may appeal to some directors more than it would to others.

 

Now for the long story. If you are happy with the short one, stop reading now.

 

 

You can either look at Ms. Sparks's generosity and the Rude Mechs and Sky Candy entries into the rehearsal space mix as another short-term, stopgap solution to one of the problems that the (small, non-profit) theater community has in Austin - lack of adequate rehearsal space - OR you can start to think along the lines that she and I did during our discussion the other evening, namely that the steps we intend to take to address the problem in the long term represent a philosophy, if you will, application of which could amount to a sea change for small theater in Austin.

 

Several of those now reading this message may recall that at the initial meeting of the effort called Create Space Austin, I stood up and attempted to describe the phenomenon in New York City which sometime after its founding took the name "Theatre Row". Long story short, the process that led to (the highly successful) Theatre Row is, to my mind, the only way that the Austin theatre community is going to ultimately alleviate the shortage of small PERFORMANCE venues in the city. That process begins with the adoption of a STRICT rule which REQUIRES concentrating a number of venues in a single geographic location which is in need of re-development (or urban renewal), thereby creating a "Theatre District" (Theatre Row is, for all intents and purposes, a "small theatre district", distinct from Broadway). This is the only way that landlords or property managers are going to be willing to grant longterm leases at reasonable rates, i.e., by insuring that there is a steady flow of theatregoers available to patronize their other businesses in the area.

 

What we're talking about here in a functional sense is some sort of performance venue co-operative, much like a cinema multiplex with screening rooms sharing a box office, concession stand, etc., and staggering performance times to accomodate several audiences. I have discovered that for some illogical reason, the theatre community in Austin just doesn't want to do that, so instead of harping any further about performance venues, I am now going to propose the same sort of collaboration/coordination/cooperation in an area where I have a personal stake, namely rehearsal/workshop space. Ms. Sparks and I have agreed to work towards some sort of online rehearsal space clearing house, where spaces can be  described (location, square footage, features, etc.) and a calendar or calendars posted showing future availability, much like I do now with the APS calendar. Google Plus has an app called "Communities" which may do the trick more simply than going to the effort of building a website.

 

Stayed tuned.

 

Warren Steele