Theater League founder Mark Edelman weighs in on KC Symphony's idea for new venue
“This will make it harder for KC Rep, the Conservatory and the Nelson to raise the money to build their new homes," he wrote. But for the Rep, that "may be a blessing in disguise."
By Melinda Henneberger
After my friend Dan Margolies and I broke the news a couple of weeks ago that the Kansas City Symphony wants to build a major new venue to host out-of-town artists in hopes of repairing its balance sheet, we heard from readers we did not know we had. (Even my French teacher said she’d seen it. Her verdict: très bizarre.)
To review, the Symphony wouldn’t abandon its home at Helzberg Hall in the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts, though for reasons beyond my power to fathom, Julia Irene Kauffman was not even initially apprised of this plan.
Instead, this would be an attempt to replicate what the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra has done for the last 25 years with its Music and Event Management Inc., better known as MEMI, which has become a major revenue source for the CSO.
It has worked well there. But if this were such a surefire model, wouldn’t every symphony in financial trouble be doing it?
Kansas City Royals majority owner John Sherman and his wife, Marny Sherman, who is on the Symphony board, have invited guests to their home this evening for “an exclusive preview of plans for a new amplified music venue in Kansas City – one that will provide millions in new revenue to fuel the Symphony’s mission.”
As potential donors think about whether to support this project, here’s a view worth considering from Mark Edelman, the founder and longtime former head of the Theater League, which brings touring Broadway productions to Kansas City and other cities in which it operates.
He does not think it’s a good idea, and here he explains why:
“This will make it harder for KC Rep, the Conservatory and the Nelson to raise the money to build their new homes. But in the case of the Rep, that may be a blessing in disguise, since they can use existing spaces instead of building a new theater.
How, you ask?
The Rep already has the Copaken Theatre at H&R Block downtown for two shows a season. They only need a theater for two more shows each year (I have heard that “A Christmas Carol” can remain at the Spencer Theatre.) They can rent the Folly Theatre for those two productions—a total of ten weeks including rehearsals and performances. This will save the Rep the cost of building and operating a theater 52 weeks a year. It will also help the Folly and bring more theater to downtown Kansas City, thereby supporting restaurants, bars, and related service providers.
But that doesn’t solve the Rep’s problem vis-a-vis its administrative, production, and rehearsal space requirements. Thankfully, there’s a nearly vacant, six-story, 80,000-square-foot office building directly behind the Folly. The Deramus Building, at 301 W 11th St., could provide space for all of these requirements as well as offices for other not-for-profit groups like KCUR that are looking to relocate. Owned by the Merriman family—long-time arts supporters in Kansas City—this new Center for the Arts could provide a home for good-paying jobs and street level activity in that neighborhood.
Downtown Kansas City has become a residential center—more than 30,000 people live there, and that’s projected to rise to 40,000. On a busy corner in the midst of this dense population, KC Rep at the Folly could attract a new, younger, and more diverse audience. Three blocks from the streetcar line, it would be more accessible. Most important, KC Rep wouldn’t have to compete with the Symphony’s capital campaign if it uses the Folly and rents all or some of the Deramus Building.
I have shared this idea with the firm that did the feasibility study for a new KC Rep theater. I don’t think they’ve considered using existing spaces like the Folly and the Deramus Building.
By the way, the Folly was originally the Missouri Shubert Theatre—it has the same footprint as theaters on Broadway. It was built to house plays and musicals just like the Rep produces.”
Thank you, Melinda for information that we do not get any other place. Sounds like you have some great ideas that need to be considered. Why does everybody want to build new?