By Jeff Clark in Christchurch
We gathered and stood in a giant shed.
It was a Sunday. I had driven back from Dunedin with my family the day before but received a text that there was a Court Theatre company meeting in Addington, so unpacking was temporarily put on hold.
Earlier that day I had been at the “Have Your Say” expo at CBS Arena; a two-day 'group brainstorm' where people can hear, and share, individual visions for the restoration of the city.
My favourite section of the expo (unsurprisingly) dealt with the cultural life of the city. Ideas ranged from the ridiculous to the sublime, all summarised on small pink post-it notes. Ideas (and opinions) are rife, indicating that Christchurch is slowly but steadily moving into recovery mode.
There were several guest speakers, one of whom was The Court’s Chief Executive Philip Aldridge. His speech was succinct, witty (he ruled out Christchurch building its own 'gherkin' or 'sailboat hotel') and advocated an organic flow to the city and low-rise buildings (the latter suggestion received a spontaneous round of applause). Philip also touched on the challenge facing the arts.
The biggest challenge facing all arts groups, from small amateur groups to large organisations such as the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra, is the challenge to find space. The vast majority of venues suitable for any medium to large performance event are in the central city – and are now either inaccessible or unusable. The Christchurch Town Hall (home to a multitude of concerts, touring productions and events) still awaits a final prognosis for repairs; The Arts Centre could take at least half a decade to restore. Some other venues such as the Isaac Theatre Royal have a shorter timeline for their repairs, but a heavy demand for these spaces mean that those who miss out are, literally, out in the cold.
Of course, the visual arts have found themselves as challenged by the events following the quake. The Christchurch Art Gallery, the city’s leading home for visual art, has been commandeered and converted into the Civil Defence Headquarters. Other gallery owners find themselves now owners of prime real estate for displaced businesses. Artists find themselves without materials, works in progress or other resources as well as places to exhibit their works. Musicians have lost many of the bars, restaurants and cafes where they used to perform.
The most worrying aspect of these challenges is that for many artists, unless something is done quickly to secure new venues and spaces, their easiest option is simply to relocate. Many of these actors, designers, technicians facing this issue moved with me through the giant doors into the shed.
The interior is breathtaking. Mostly because of the sheer size of the empty space. The space used to be a grain silo. From the doors to the rear wall of the space is more than the length of a rugby field, and the roof is over three stories above us. Above the various doors are the names of various suburbs of the city written in chalk. This is a place that was once connected to every part of the city. Now, it is essentially a blank canvas.
Our Artistic Director, Ross Gumbley, is over six feet tall and the size of the building dwarfed him (which, for anyone who has met Ross knows, is a hard thing to do). Ross welcomed us and handed over to Philip (in his second speaking engagement of the day). Philip outlined the road that had led us to this shed: a long process of due diligence, lease negotiations and resource consent – a process which could have been derailed at any point along the way by any number of obstacles. However, by the end of the day on Friday 13 May (an ironic date), The Court Theatre had secured a new, albeit temporary, home.
The aim is to have the new facility complete and a production up and running (the première of the latest play by legendary NZ playwright Roger Hall, A Short Cut to Happiness) by November. It’s a goal – an aspiration, and a promise to the people of Christchurch, as much as it is to the people of The Court. Ideally, when The Court returns to the central city (and it is when, not if) the facility will remain as a venue for use by other performing arts organisations. It is a way for The Court to survive in the short term and a way for the arts in Christchurch to thrive in the future.
It will not be easy. What financial reserves the theatre has will only be a small fraction of the total cost. It will be a long road and the fundraising efforts alone will keep everyone extremely busy. There are challenges ahead.
But, as we stood in The Shed, we saw opportunity. We have a house. Time to make it a home.