The Brooklyn Papers / Tom Callan

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Legendary theater-film actress Ruby Dee was at The Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation’s Billie Holiday Theatre on Wednesday to celebrate the organization’s acceptance of an unprecedented $900,000 commitment from Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz’s capital budget funds.

The money will be used for theater renovations that include an upgrade in lighting and sound systems, which will allow the theater to stage a broader range of theater and dance as well as more performances in a given season, according to the theater’s executive director, Marjorie Moon.

"We’re going to make the magic happen in fantastic ways," Moon said, explaining that the theater is considerably behind the times in special effects capabilities and technological efficiency. The theater, which is now in its 34th season, has never been renovated.

The Billie Holiday Theatre, which has produced or presented more than 175 productions over the years, stages mostly new work by young African-American and Caribbean-American writers, giving exposure to aspiring minority actors, directors and designers.

"It’s a getting-started place," Dee said at the event. Dee, who has been a Billie Holiday Theatre board member since its founding, said it is theaters like this that help "us to define and find ourselves in the arts." Dee lamented that public money, such as Markowitz’s allocation, is made available to minority venues so infrequently.

On behalf of the theater, actor Peggy Alston presented Dee with an honorary seat plaque in appreciation of "her brilliance and profound commitment to the black theater and the arts." Dee compared the mission and accomplishments of the Billie Holiday Theatre to that of the theater where she got her start, Harlem’s American Negro Theater, which she called "a small but steady light."

"The [Billie Holiday] theatre is a springboard," said actor-playwright Joyce Sylvester, who wrote a tribute poem for Dee and presented it at the event. "It got me to Broadway."

The Billie Holiday Theatre’s stage has been tread on by the likes of Samuel L. Jackson, who made his New York theater debut there in 1978; Tichina Arnold, who now plays Chris Rock’s mother on UPN’s "Everybody Hates Chris"; and Debbie Allen, who has acted in nearly 30 films and television shows since the late 1970s.

The intimate theater has a capacity of 200, attracting about 30,000 patrons each year, and more than 900,000 over the course of its 33 years. The seats are arranged in steeply-stacked rows to offer a close look at the stage, which is high and deep enough to allow for modest sets. Although the theater’s lobby remains appealing with its skylights, courtyard, chandeliers and original sculptures and paintings, the theater itself suffers from three decades of use. The chairs’ upholstery is tattered; the carpet is worn and stained; the aisles lack functioning floor lights; and the wallpaper is faded, dirty and peeling.

"We deserve better support for the cultural institutions of Brooklyn - especially in central Brooklyn," Colvin Grannum, president of the Bedford-Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation, said. Grannum said the Billie Holiday Theatre is an important forum for the Brooklyn community, and "an important place for expression and growth."

"You deserve it," Markowitz said of the renovation to the approximately 100 people who attended the event. He called the Billie Holiday Theatre "a true Brooklyn landmark" and was pleased to make possible "the renovation that will give this theater all the splendor of the singer it’s named for." Grannum presented Markowitz with an honorary plaque.

The Billie Holiday Theatre’s 2005-2006 season begins on Nov. 4 with "Otis and Zora," a drama about a guilt-ridden couple grieving the loss of their child. The play runs through Dec. 18. The season continues with "Storm Stories: A Multimedia Dramatic Event," a series of personal accounts of Hurricane Katrina’s aftermath and "Love and Marriage and New York City," a comedy about two Jamaican-born couples who marry each other to acquire green cards.
More improvements

The $900,000 allotment from the borough president is the first phase of a two-phase renovation plan for the theater, according to Tracey Capers, senior vice president of the Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation. In addition to the technological upgrades, the theater renovation’s first phase, which will begin in the summer of 2006, includes new seats, carpeting, aisle lights, wallpaper and chandeliers.

In the second phase, which Capers said is tentatively slated to begin sometime in 2007, the corporation plans to expand the wing and fly spaces of the theater’s stage, further diversifying the theater’s staging capabilities. The corporation also plans to increase the theater’s seating capacity by about 50.

Although the exact details and cost of the second phase are still in development, Capers said it is likely to cost another $1 million. That money will come from the corporation’s budget and potentially from additional fundraising.

The corporation’s Restoration Plaza, of which the Billie Holiday Theatre is a part, occupies over 300,000 square feet and, in addition to the theater, houses an art gallery and a youth academy of the arts. The corporation anticipates renovations for the entire plaza, made possible by $12 million committed by the City Council and the Department of Small Business Services that will be disbursed over the next three or four years.

"We want Restoration Plaza to be a first-class destination for art, culture and commerce," Capers said. "We want people of Brooklyn to see this as their place."

The Billie Holiday Theatre is located at 1368 Fulton St. at New York Avenue in Bedford-Stuyvesant. Performances during the season are held Thursday through Sunday, with two performances on Saturdays. Ticket prices range from $12 to $20, depending on the day and theater section. For more information, call the box office at (718) 636-0918 or visit the theater’s Web site, www.thebilliehoilday.org.

©2005 The Brooklyn Paper

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