Village Squire, 1979-12, Page 30knowledge a lengthy, lively tale of success,
failure and eternal struggle. That's been
the soap opera -like story of his attempts to
establish an alternative to the larger
Theatre London facility in the city.
The latest chapter of the story sees all
the equipment of the old Centre Stage
theatre sitting in his basement while he
looks for an old loft or warehouse to try to
get his vision of a theatre going again.
Livingstone came to London in 1970 from
Vancouver to teach at the University of
Western Ontario and direct at the
university's Talbot Theatre. He quit there
because he wanted to do more directing
and the university wanted him to do more
teaching. He organized a professional
theatre company at the Gallery Theatre on
York Street but lost that home because of
an artistic dispute with the owner of the
building. He organized another theatre
called the New Space in a loft but that too
went down the drain when the landlord
found someone who could afford to pay
more for the space.
It was then that things seemed to be
looking up. The management of the new
City Centre Mall agreed to give a portion of
space on the second floor for a theatre. It
was designed in a diamond shape with
audience on two sides. The hope of
Livingstone was to provide a lasting
alternate theatre at long last. The hope of
the management was to bring more people
into the building. With that in mind one of
the features of the Centre Stage during its
early years was to present lunchhour
theatre which was eventually discontinued
due to a lack of funds.
That was to be a continual problem at
Centre Stage. The theatre was small in the
first place, seating only just over 100.
Renovations needed for fire regulations
brought that down to under 80. Even if
every seat was filled every night the
theatre was bound to lose money. It's been
a continual battle every year since to find
the money in a time of reduced government
grants to keep the theatre going. Last year
after a lengthy struggle Livingstone came
up with enough money for a shortened
season. One of the shows, American
Buffalo proved a hit that was revived to
play at Theatre London and went to
Toronto this fall under the sponsorship of
producer and former Theatre London
artistic director Heinar Pillar.
All of which meant of course that there
weren't many people being brought in to
the City Centre Mall by the theatre, a
theatre which was paying only $1 a year for
very prime real estate. So this year the
marriage of commerce and theatre ended
when the mall management decided not to
renew the lease for the theatre.
Now Livingstone is looking for another
promised land.
KINCARDINE STATION BURNS
Western Ontario has lost another of its
old railway stations this time not to the
wrecker's hammer but to fire.
A tire termed as "suspicious" by
28 Village Squire, December 1978
YOU ARE INVITED
TO THE
GRAND t.PC4! G
OF
RINA'S FLOWERS
AT ITS_
"NEW LOCATION"
20 JOHN ST. WEST, WINGHAM
JUST BEHIND THE T.D. BANK
DECEMBER 6, 7, 8.
FREE CHRISTMAS CORSAGE
TO THE FIRST TEN CUSTOMERS EACH DAY
FREE DRAW EACH DAY
--REFRESHMENTS--
"FEEL FREE TO COME IN AND BROWSE"
GREEN PLANTS, CHRISTMAS PLANTS, SILKS,
DRIED ARRANGEMENTS.
PHONE 357-2023
THURS. 6th 9-6
FRI. 7th 9-9
SAT. 8th 9-6