[NEohioPAL] Cleveland Play House set to move downtown

Thu Apr 9 15:30:27 PDT 2009

I have to say that my emotional (gut) reaction is not to be happy about the
news, but logically it makes sense.

On the bad side...
- Sentimentality: Nearly 4 years ago I moved to Cleveland. The first live
theater show I saw in Cleveland was at the Play House (in the Brooks).
- The location is more convenient to me living in Cleveland Heights
(actually, not long ago, I was at a CMA shindig, at 7:45 I pulled out my
iPod ordered a ticket, and was in my seat at CPH reading the program by
7:55)
- When people ask me the "Why did you move to Cleveland?" question,
invariably with a whiny emphasis on a drawn out "Cleveland" I like listing
the Cleveland Play House and Playhouse Square as discreet entities (along
with, of course, all of the other fine features Cleveland has). Whith one
inhabiting the other I'm afraid the distinction between the two will be
lost.
- I hate to see performance space lost. To me, fewer theaters (or even the
same number of theaters controlled by fewer players) seems like it is bound
to lead to less variety, and potentially lower quality.
- The Allen is by far my favorite theater at Playhouse Square; based on what
I've read it will be "reconfigured" to accommodate at least two performance
spaces. I'm afraid of what "reconfiguring" will do to the architecture.
- I have enough Playhouse Square parking passes on my dashboard as it is.
- With the completion of the Euclid Cooridoor project I really hate being
anywhere near Playhouse Square on Euclid any time immediately before or
after curtain and when the Chester garage is full it's kind of hard to
avoid.  If I have a heart attack in the next 10 years I'd put money on that
being a cause.
- I hate to see a short term (hopefully & relatively) financial issue be the
cause of irreversable decisions.
- It seems like theres enough other vacant space in this city that could be
adapted without taking a fully functioning theater offline, though probably
not cost effectively or for a professional company [though I would love to
see some of the churches that are being shuttered adaptively reused!]

On the good (or at least neutral) side.
- The Bolton and Dury theaters are not really all that great from an
audience member's perspective.
- I caught a brief interview on WJW/Fox 8 last night where it was said that
it would take something like $5m just to fix issues in the stagehouse roof.
I don't have $5m lying around, and it doesn't seem like many other people do
either. The same interview pointed out issues with the stage deck and
accoustics.
- The cost of operating the building is aparently astronomical, and I don't
get the impression that there are many ancillary revenue opportunities to
offset the costs [whereas, for example, as I understand it the Playhouse
Square Foundation has a real estate operation]
- If given the choice between (a) Staying put and running out of money then
shutting down, or (b) moving, retiring debt, and putting on quality
programming, I'll take the latter.

Lincoln
(Currently through Week #48 twoard my goal of 52 weeks of seeing at least
one performing art in the greater Cleveland area)

On Thu, Apr 9, 2009 at 1:42 PM, Beverly Kristy <bkristy at mindspring.com>wrote:

>  Hi NEopal,
>
> I have very mixed feelings about this. It's sad to think about no more
> great theatre at that complex. I have seen many a great performance there,
> always an eclectic mix of offerings. The architecture inside and out is
> indeed very fine, even the warmth and quaintness of the Brooks theater.
>
> However, in these tough times, if it comes down to not surviving as an
> institution or moving, I feel moving is the way to go. On the upside, if the
> article is to be believed, a host of new spaces and technologies would be
> available to the Playhouse to allow them to continue entertaining the
> community. The Allen theater has been horribly underused since it's
> restoration and this plan would remedy that problem. There are a great many
> folks out there who are unaware of what they're missing at the Playhouse
> because it's located out of the main entertainment area of Cleveland. With
> more and more great attractions downtown, I think the Playhouse would
> benefit from a wider audience base. I know they've been trying for awhile,
> with ticket specials and other marketing, to attract a more diverse audience
> and moving to Playhouse Square would help that goal.
>
> I do hope the new owner of the property would retain the building and
> repurpose it. Cleveland Clinic I'm betting will snatch it up, as it adjoins
> their property and they are ever-expanding. (See related article on the
> demise of the Cleveland Podiatric College.)
>
> Beverly Kristy
> 440 487 6698
> bkristy at mindspring.com
> http://resumes.actorsaccess.com/beverlykristy
>
>
>
>
> >Have you read today's front page of The Plain Dealer?
>
> >What are your feelings on the sale, on the move of The Cleveland Play
> House?
>
> >What affect does this have on Theatre in Cleveland?
>
> >How does this move affect the Arts community and our relationship with
> Cleveland Clinic Foundation?
>
> >How does "The Clinic" support the Arts?
>
> >Will "*this 12-acre tract and its 295,000 square foot complex designed by
> superstar architect Phillip Johnson"* be leveled into a parking facility?
>
> >What are your questions?
>
> >How do you feel as a local artist, thespian?
>
>
>
> http://www.newseum.org/todaysfrontpages/hr.asp?fpVname=OH_CPD&ref_pge=gal&b_pge=1
>
>
>
>
>
> *Renee Matthews-Jackson*
> ~poet/playwright/actor/instructor/director
>
>
>
>
>
>  ------------------------------
>
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