UNB/STU Dance crew says performance space hard to come by

When the UNB/STU Dance crew wake up the morning of a show, they have little time to rest. Their shows don’t start until 7 p.m., but they have to be at the SUB Ballroom by noon.

Who else will set up all the chairs, rent and pick up the lighting and sound equipment, hook everything up, then build their stage? After the audience leaves and they’ve cleaned everything up they go home, tired, spent. They will usually spend 12 hours on campus.

Allison Toogood, the crew’s president, says it isn’t ideal for dancing.

“We can’t dance on a dirty floor. Not that we’re picky, it just cuts up our legs and our feet.”

The room also lacks a raised platform, which plays a big part in obstructing the audience’s view. Toogood says the audience’s biggest complaint is that from the back they can’t see anything.

“It’s just this big room,” Toogood said. “And we get it basically for free, but this year we wanted to try to get a real theatre.”

When Toogood looked at the Blackbox Theatre in James Dunn Hall, she knew it would be the perfect place for her group to host their shows.

“It has wings. It has lighting. It’s just gorgeous.”

Unlike the Ballroom there’s proper seating, sound and lighting. And the group are sick of coming home tired.

But when Emily Lutz, a member of the crew, emailed room bookings asking to use the theatre for one night last November, she was sent to Ilkay Silk, the director of drama at St. Thomas University.

“When I emailed her, we said we would take any single day in November, as long it’s during the evening,” Lutz said. “But she just said, I’m sorry, the theatre is for St. Thomas students only… we have classes and I am unable to help you.”

Between bookings for TST and classes held in the space, Silk said there’s something going on in the theatre every day. And even though the dance group says they’ll only need the theatre for a few hours, Silk said that’s not realistic.

“It’s a two to four day commitment,” she said.

“The policy for the Blackbox theatre is it’s a theatrical space, it’s a performance space,” she added. “The priorities are Theatre St. Thomas, and the concentration in drama.

“I feel sorry for them, don’t get me wrong, but what can I do? Many times we say no to people, many times we say yes. People can come and use [the Blackbox] when it’s available. It’s just not available.”

Lutz said the group has gone into the community to look for an alternative venue other than the Blackbox, but most places require notice a year in advance and can be costly.

In the meantime, the group has secured it’s second semester show for Memorial Hall. It’s not exactly what they wanted, but it’s a step up. But the November show will still be at the SUB Ballroom.

“We are 100 per cent dedicated to putting on the best show we can. And it just seems like so much work for something that shouldn’t be this hard.” Lutz said. “We’re not like a sports team. We don’t need a gym. We need a performance space.”