Now that more than a decade of dreaming, planning, politicking, fundraising and, finally, building is over and the $92 million Ellie Caulkins Opera House is open and abuzz with activity, the natural question is: What’s next?
What further improvements should be made to the 34-year-old Denver Performing Arts Complex? What needs to be done to take what is already in many ways a world-class facility and make it even better?
At the top of the priority list is an overhaul of Boettcher Concert Hall, the home of the Colorado Symphony. Its acoustics have drawn criticism from musicians and patrons alike, and its audience amenities leave much to be desired.
“There is a consensus that the concert experience for patrons at Boettcher is not ideal and is in many ways unpleasant,” concluded a 2004 report by Artec Consultants Inc. of New York. “The lobby area is rather narrow, lacking in both grandeur, spaciousness and comfort.”
In May 2004, Jack Finlaw, director of Denver’s Division of Theatres and Arenas, said work could begin as early as this summer. But he has since revised such expectations, because the project would require a bond issue along with a plethora of other city initiatives needing funds.
“Frankly, it’s a challenge financially,” Finlaw said. “The vision I have right now is that we really probably need to get the administration in the next year or so to decide whether we want to go forward.”
He has also had to scale back his ambitions because of financial and political realities. Rather than a massive overhaul of the 28-year-old hall, he now envisions a “fine-tuning” that would include acoustical enhancements, seating reduction and what he calls a wraparound.
The latter would be an addition that would circle the southwestern portion of the building, offering views to the mountains and providing space for a possible restaurant, as well as significantly enlarged lobby and additional restrooms.
Other aspects of the arts complex deserving attention:
Concourse
In the past couple of years, the complex has increased the number and size of banners hanging in its covered concourse. Especially notable has been the addition of one at the Curtis Street entrance that proclaims what the complex is and lists the main tenants.
These banners are a major improvement, because they enliven this otherwise inert space and add needed color to its monochromatic buildings.
To further enhance the concourse, consideration should be given to moving the handful of disjointed artworks, which seem to be afterthoughts and not really related to the complex either aesthetically or thematically.
To replace them, the city should consider commissioning art specifically for the space, perhaps with private funding. An obvious possibility would be a work involving lasers or other technology allowing it to extend across the vastness of the concourse and take advantage of its cavernous spaces.
Drop-off areas
The complex’s configuration makes it extremely difficult for buses, taxis or private vehicles to drop off patrons. All that exists is a loading area that stretches maybe 30 feet along 14th Street, with the rush of passing traffic complicating stops.
A radical solution would be the addition of a driveway running along the western side of the complex from Champa Street to Arapahoe Street, allowing people to drop off passengers in a more relaxed manner on that underused side of the facility.
Parking
As anyone who attended an arts complex performance during the March 17-19 weekend can attest, parking was a mess. People waited in a long, slow-moving line stretching down Arapahoe Street and around the corner along Speer Boulevard, and many were late for their shows.
An immediate solution would be persuading more people to use the adjacent light rail or park in the often underused, sometimes empty Colorado Convention Center garage. It is directly across Champa Street from the arts complex and connected by an easily accessible foot bridge.
Other solutions would be modifications to the arts complex garage, which is operated by the parking management division of the Department of Public Works – adding another entrance or increasing the number of ticket booths.
A short-term fix might be the sale of parking passes, which patrons could simply insert into an automated machine on their way in, saving a considerable amount of time. These could even be sold as part of subscription packages to the theater, symphony or opera.
Parking garage exterior
In the long term, the arts complex garage will need a face lift. Its bare, functional look might have been adequate at one point, but it is wanting now, particularly considering it will be diagonal from a proposed Four Seasons Hotel.
“It’s a concrete bunker and not a particularly attractive part of the performing arts complex,” Finlaw said. “At a minimum, I think I’d like to see it refaced – something more attractive on the outside.”
He sees such an improvement as a potentially significant facet of the Downtown Denver Partnership’s 14th Street Initiative, a plan envisioning a major upgrade of the street from Larimer Square to the Civic Center.
Restaurants
The mix of dining establishments continues to be insufficient given the size of the arts complex and the number of patrons who attend performances there – more than 1 million in 2004. The two main eateries are the Theatre Cafe and Kevin Taylor’s at the Opera House.
It would seem that at least one more fine restaurant would be desirable, but Finlaw said Kevin Taylor’s is still struggling to gain a consistent clientele, especially on evenings with few scheduled performances. So such a culinary addition is not likely to happen soon.
“We heard from our constituents, particularly the symphony, and, of course, the opera and ballet, that wouldn’t it be great to have a restaurant right on-site. But we haven’t reached capacity by any means,” Finlaw said.
What will help is the planned addition of a coffee shop across from the Caulkins Opera House at the entrance to the performing arts complex.
Art
The city’s public art program did a superb job of choosing art for the opera house, a mix of commissions for the space and donated works, including a chandelier by Dale Chihuly.
It is a model of how art can tastefully enhance the beauty of a performing-arts facility. Now, the city needs to apply the lessons learned at the Ellie to the other facilities in the complex.
Boettcher has an ungainly mishmash of art that has somehow become permanently exhibited there. And like the Buell Theatre, it serves as gallery space for amateurish art exhibitions that do nothing but embarrass the city.
The Division of Theatres and Arenas either needs to end these rotating shows or find a way to control their quality. And in the same way, it needs to assemble a cohesive, first-class group of permanent artworks for the two halls, perhaps in collaboration with the public art program.
None of these improvements will happen overnight. But if thinking and planning do not begin now, they will never happen.
Fine arts critic Kyle MacMillan can be reached at 303-820-1675 or kmacmillan@denverpost.com.
