CHENNAI: If there is one place that performers in the city, from theatre artists to dancers to musicians hold close to their heart, it is SPACES, a performance area situated opposite Elliots Beach in Besant Nagar.
SPACES is one of the few, if not the only, performance space in the city which offer their stages to artists for free, giving an opportunity to amateur artists. But now, cyclone Vardah has torn apart the campus and authorities say it would take more than eight moths to get it running again.
Run by journalist and stage lights designer, Sadanand Menon since 2000, SPACES has also been host to dance and Kalari classes as well as music and theatre rehearsals.
Now all those classes will have to be put on hold for the next couple of months, “The Kalari space arena built in 2007 is designed in the old Kerala style. It is now just dust, as a tree crashed right on the stage. There was almost nothing to retrieve from the area, “ he said.
The campus has over 50 trees, mostly neem and Vardah has killed 12 of them. Menon said that another older structure built as a courtyard theatre, which is about 34-years-old has also been damaged but there were chances of it being rebuilt unlike the Kalari arena. “About 200 tiles from the structure have flown off and there are cracks as well but they can be repaired,” he added.
About 100 students attend the Kalari classes, 50 Bharatnatyam classes, 30 Carnatic classes and about the same number yoga classes as well. “ Many art groups have been using these places for ages. If not for performance, then peopel use it for their rehearsals. Some of the best known groups have memories of these stages,” Menon told Express.
Even LGBT community meetings are often conducted at SPACES and eco-farming groups also practise on the campus. Menon said. “Benny Kuriakose, the architect who designed many of these arenas has come forward to help us and also Chennai Architects’ Forum,which has some of the leading architects and who also hold their meetings here have come forward to help us, so we should have some kind of plan in the next two-three days,” Menon explained.
However, Menon said financial expenditures would have to be considered. “If it is too expensive, we might not be able to do much but we have had a lot of support coming in, both to clear up the space and also for funding. So we’ll wait and see,” he said. Around 50-60 volunteers turned up at SPACES on Tuesday and Wednesday to help. However the group had trouble in finding machine saw and are trying to get a diesel-run saw, in case electricity was not restored in the next few days.
Besides performers, it is special to theatre and art lovers too. Alekhya Kilambi, a resident, said SPACES was where she first got a taste of theatre.
“We were a young college group; so we couldn’t afford to rent out a place, but SPACES was welcoming. I’ve seen some of the most beautiful performances and it was special because it was right by the sea and we could hear the waves and take a walk by the beach after a show. I really hope they’re able to restore it soon,” she said.