A New Indie Theatre Advocacy Organization Launches

New York City is a mecca for independent artists. It is THE place to go to create and see theater. But performances venues all over the city are closing at a rapid rate. Just this month Soho Rep lost their home at WalkerSpace and The Sandbox in Long Island City was forced to shut its doors. Small theaters are closing, forcing artists to leave the city. New York City's cultural diversity is at risk.

IndieSpace was founded to address an area of extreme need in New York City. In the last decade alone, over 70 performance venues in NYC have closed permanently or been repurposed, while the number of performing groups has grown. At this moment, at least 10 more spaces are vulnerable to the extreme pressures of the real estate market. Nonprofit theaters are forced to spend a high percentage of their budget on rent, risking financial health, artistic excellence, and audience loyalty. IndieSpace uses our expertise in both real estate and theater to bridge the gap between these communities and identify innovative solutions to real estate challenges.

IndieSpace is a partnership between indie theatre artists and New York real estate professionals to create permanent real estate solutions for the independent theater community by delivering affordable and sustainable creative space for a diversity of performing artists, along with supportive programs. IndieSpace plans to purchase properties and convert them to permanent, stable space for artists as well as collaborate with owners and developers to carve out IndieSpace owned and operated theaters. Within these new spaces will be Artists in Residence, operating theaters, guest curators, and community space. This program will give indie artists a stable space to create, which will lead to a higher level of artistic output. It will also provide the community with diverse, vibrant, and abundant culture by offering people affordable and local entertainment options and opportunities to connect to and participate in the arts.

IndieSpace is currently looking for development partners, property owners with vacant, under-utilized space, board members with unique expertise,donors with a passion for promoting the arts, and New Yorkers with an interest in preserving the most vibrant cultural community in the world. Every penny donated to IndieSpace will go towards the purchase of their first space, which they hope to find and acquire by the end of 2017. Please visit www.indiespace.org to learn more, and to find out how you can help.