Artistic director says he wants to stay in St. Anthony Park
The Gremlin Theatre is moving at the end of July. Citing changes in ownership and developmental plans for the building at 2400 University Ave. that has housed the company for the last five years, artistic director Peter Christian Hansen says the time has come to look for new quarters.
“We’ve started looking for the next space,” he says, “but we’ll take some time to find the right space.”
Although Hansen states that the Gremlin did not suffer economically during the recent bout of light-rail transit (LRT) construction on University Avenue, he does acknowledge that the LRT project had an impact nonetheless.
“We lost the parking spaces on University Avenue in front of the building, which makes it difficult to load and unload sets,” he says. “We also lost a nearby bus stop, which [creates] a major obstacle.”
The Gremlin Theatre, which previously made its home in a reconditioned warehouse in St. Paul’s Lowertown, is currently celebrating its 15th season. Hansen hopes the company will be able to remain in St. Anthony Park.
“I love the mix of things happening in the area,” he notes. “We’ve brought thousands of people into the area—even during the [LRT] construction, our attendance went up—I’d like to be able to show a commitment to the area.”
Plans for the Gremlin production of Pirandello’s Six Characters in Search of an Author remain on schedule. The performance will open on Friday, March 1. The Gremlin has traditionally mounted three or four productions a year, while renting space to other theater groups in between its own plays. That won’t change. Hansen says there will be plays in the building until the end of the lease in July.
For more information about the Gremlin Theatre and its current schedule, visit www.gremlin-theatre.org or call 651-228-7008.
