Hartford Stage got “an early vote of confidence” from Gov. M. Jodi Rell last week when she announced that $2 million in bonding funds would go to improvements for the theater organization’s 30-year-old building.
Hartford Stage spokeswoman Julie Stapf said Rell’s contribution was an excellent early step in raising the money needed to modernize, renovate and expand the facility, expected to cost more than $11 million. The theater, which attracts about 135,000 theater-goers annually, is in need of a tune up, she said.
“We have some very significant problems with the facility,” Stapf said.
The roof and wiring need improvement, the building needs better handicap accessibility, and some theater spaces need to be expanded. The company is still exploring its options right now, examining how the theater walls might be expanded. That’s particularly tough for the Hartford Stage, Stapf said, as it’s positioned in a parking garage.
Architect Selected
Hartford Stage announced on Feb. 20 that Mitchell Kurtz, a New York City-based theater architect, will take charge of designing the renovation. Kurtz has experience with the Hartford Stage, previously working as a National Endowment for the Arts/Theater Communications Guild fellow in 1978, as well as on alteration projects in 1995 and 2002.
The firm also has experience with historic preservation, including work for the Chataqua Institution’s Bratton Theatre, which garnered the AIA Design Award for Adaptive Re-Use/Historic Preservation in 2001.
Stapf said the company is holding off on issuing a fund-raising goal or publishing images of what the redesigned theater will look like until the summer.
Regardless, Stapf said the $2 million in bonding funds is a strong start. The money comes from the state’s $20 million bonding fund for capital projects related to the arts.
State Support
“Hartford Stage is a true cultural treasure, and we want it to grow even more valuable over time,” Rell said in a press release. “We also want more and more of Connecticut’s young people to be exposed to the wonderful performances that occur there. That is why the state will play a supporting role to ensure that the theater’s future in Hartford and growth in Hartford is secure.”
Some of the possibilities for the Hartford Stage’s expansion include creating a smaller, secondary stage space, creating bigger back-stage areas, improving its restrooms, and enhancing its lobby.
The current facility doesn’t have good public spaces to host events and receptions, Stapf said, and the organizers are currently looking into the feasibility of creating such areas.
