“The Ballad of Trayvon Martin” is winning accolades for the New Freedom Theater. The play’s the thing, but behind the scenes the Collaborative is helping the theater sustain its recent revival.
Peter Crimmins of Newsworks wrote, “The production marks a revival of the long-struggling theater… "The Ballad of Trayvon Martin" will be performed 12 times during its two-week run. That would not be unusual for most theaters, but this kind of extended programming has not been seen here for many years due to crippling problems within the organization…. The company was nearly crushed by debt, leaving its building– the history Edwin Forrest House—in disrepair.”
Debt forgiveness by PNC Bank and an unswerving commitment to serving the African-American community has helped the theater company turn the corner. The Collaborative is also playing a role in New Freedom Theater’s long term resiliency. See our Feasibility Study for Renovation.
“The Community Design Collaborative—a group of designers and architects who do pro bono work for selected projects—assessed the building to determine how it can be repurposed for more uses, rentals, and tenants. That could lead to new revenue and greater solvency,” Newsworks reported on May 9, 2016 in New Freedom Theater turns a corner.
