Reading of Chelsea Walls is Latest Creative Effort at Endangered Center at West Park
The cultural institutions that call the Center for West Park inside the West Side Park Presbyterian Church are still battling to keep the church elders from selling the 136 year old structure to a developer. A reading of “Chelsea Walls” was staged at the Center recently.
“If it wasn’t for this place, I wouldn’t live in New York,” bemoans a character from Chelsea Walls at a recent reading at The Center at West Park. “This place” to which is being referred is the infamous Hotel Chelsea, perhaps the most iconic and noteworthy landmark in the neighborhood.
The groundbreaking screenplay, written by Nicole Burdette, debuted thirty-four years ago, and was subsequently made into a critically acclaimed, analagous movie directed by Ethan Hawke. A reading of the script was performed by a cast hand-selected by Burdette mid-December at The Center at Park West on the upper west side.
The actors, ranging in age from approximately twelve to seventy, donned their own street clothes, and carried their scripts for reference, given varying degrees of individual memorization. But that didn’t detract from the magical and nimble performance given, on the unique and impressive stage of The Center. An immense stained glass window provided a backdrop, reminiscent of the intricate stained glass workmanship on the windows of the hotel, as well.
The script focuses on the grit and schadenfreude of a Hotel Chelsea radically different from its current iteration, spiffed up and ritzier than it ever was before. But much like The Center, who’s goal “is bringing the past together with the future,” according to Executive Director Debby Hirshman, Chelsea Walls celebrates the history of the hotel in a modern context. As such, The Center was a perfect venue for a revival reading.
Spaces like The Center at West Park are few and far between. Established in 2016 by a coalition of community members, it has functioned as a thriving intergenerational hub for the arts, committed to maintaining the affordability and accessibility of the arts to the neighborhood. the landmarked building, West Side Park Presbyterian Church that was built in 1889. It is now the home of The Center, which still functions as an LGBTQ+-welcoming church on Sundays, but also as precious haven for the arts and the community. God’s Love We Deliver began its mission within these hallowed walls as well, and it retains its spirit of inclusivity and artistic encouragement via a myriad of disciplines, from youth ballet, movies, stage productions, kids’ programs, and even pickleball. It serves as fertile milieu for the community, “where developing artists can hone their craft,” proudly states Robert Feinstein of the Board of Directors for The Center, and performers of ever degree of celebrity have been known to grace the stage, from Mark Ruffalo to Matt Dillon.
Shockingly, or perhaps not given the current climate of real estate, the unique and irreplaceable venue’s fate is in jeopardy. It is potentially up for sale to yet another high-end residential developer, completely negating it history and landmarked status, exquisite and awe-inspiring Romanesque Revival architecuture, in addition to its current significance to the neighborhood and the art scene as a whole. The fate of the center has been on shaky ground for some time, despite some major celebrities, such as Matt Damon and Mr. Ruffalo, having rallied to save it in recent years. Still, the building needs some fundamental renovations, more costly than can be easily handled by the 501(c)3 charity’s budget, and the church elders, unable to fund the multi-million dollars in needed repairs, want to sell it.
In our own neighborhood, Councilmember Erik Bottcher recently secured $2 million in funding for RIALTO West at 705 10th Avenue, which is described as a 5,500 square foot performance, work and rehearsal space that may function in a similar capacity as the Center. But it will not replace the Center in the 136-year old Church if the Center is lost. The city needs more accessible, propinquity venues such as these to inspire and support a sense of community throughout the boroughs, and far less elitist luxury residential development. Even if RIALTO comes to fruition, it would not replace The Center at Park West. Like the line from Chelsea Walls, “The stay at the (Hotel) Chelsea because it’s the only place where people will still listen to them.” Sometimes people need a physical place to be, be heard, and be seen. That is how The Center at Park West serves, as should RIALTO, and the city can’t afford to lose these treasures.