This week’s issue of Business West has an article by Springfield-based writer Jaclyn C. Stevenson focusing on the revitalization of theaters in western Massachusetts, including mention of Springfield’s Bing Theater. From the article:
The Bing project is different in many ways from the Colonial [in Pittsfield] and Mahaiwe [in Great Barrington] projects; it is a less costly endeavor—Hale projects that the pricetag will not surpass $1 million—and it is a younger building, representing architecture popular among movie houses in the 1950s. …But there are also similarities, especially when it comes to that idea of a theater as a symbol of better times.
“It is a soft spot for many people in the area,” said [X Main Street Corp. vice president Brian] Hale. “I’ve seen some amazing artistic performances in Northampton, or in the Berkshires, and that’s great. But why not bring those performances here, so people can experience them in their own neighborhood?”
Structurally, Hale said the building is in good shape, and students from Springfield’s Putnam Vocational High School are working with the Bing Committee to complete a number of construction, heating, and plumbing projects, and Hale said he hopes to have the building’s lobby section up to code and fully operational, hosting gallery exhibits, small film screenings, and community art classes by spring, 2007. Phase two of the project, which would reopen the theater’s stage and screen area is still in the planning stages.
“It’s true that we’re crawling forward. But the bottom line is we’re trying to develop an art zone, and I think we have a better-than even-money chance of doing so,” he said.
The Bing Theater has long appeared to be neglected, with the facade’s plate glass broken and the front room—visible through the large pieces of plate glass—disheveled and trashed-looking. If it’s going to be rehabbed for real, that’s great, but how about boosting the street-level appearance just a tad? I’ll be happy to pull together a group of volunteers for an hour, with a broom and a trash bag—we don’t need $1 million to take care of a few modest cosmetic details (the plate glass is another matter). Anyone else want to pitch in on this?
