On Friday, Oct. 27, the Empty Space Theatre Board of Directors announced that the company would cease operations effective immediately.
The announcement came only ten months after the Empty Space had moved from their Fremont theater to the Lee Center at Seattle University. At the time of the move, Empty Space artistic director Alison Narver had stated that the company had come perilously close to shutting down several times in the previous two years, but had been saved by last-minute donations from the community.
The move to the Lee Center and a return to the Capitol Hill neighborhood where the company began was seen as a way to stabilize the Empty Space's finances. Besides performing in the Lee Center, the Empty Space staff took offices within the School of Arts. Early predictions said that the company, which has been performing with a deficit of approximately $75,000, could be in the black by the end of the 2007 season.
After the move, the Empty Space continued their 2006 season in the Lee Center with performances of Lauren Weedman's "Bust" and the new work "Louis Slotin Sonata" by local playwright Paul Mullin. The season was scheduled to continue with a return of the company's popular "Forbidden Xmas" in December, prior to the Board's announcement of the closure.
"We're very disappointed to be taking this step," said Erik Blachford, chair of the Empty Space board. "We appreciate the support we have had from the community and we regret that the board is unable to raise the funds necessary to continue."
"We're incredibly proud to have introduced new playwrights to Seattle, to have nurtured local artists and to have produced shows of lasting impact," said Narver in a press statement issued on Friday. "Founded in 1971, the Empty Space has become a home for bold, provocative, and celebratory new work. While I am deeply saddened by the Board's decision we are profoundly grateful to the many subscribers, artists, volunteers, staff members, interns and audience members who have supported us with such loyalty and passion for so many years."
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