Making space: New collective gives Chattanooga performers a place to rehearse

In the top floor of the St. Luke’s United Methodist Church building on Wednesday night, a choir rehearsed — but not a church choir.

The building has become home for the Performance Space Alliance as Blake Harris, with the help of ArtsBuild and the Lyndhurst Foundation, has begun to try to solve what he calls a 30-year problem of local performing arts groups struggling to find rehearsal spaces in Chattanooga.

“We have amazing venues here, but groups need a permanent space and a reliable space, accessible space, consistent space to create,” Harris said in an interview.

The Performance Space Alliance is providing that space, Harris said. The organization launched the pilot program Oct. 1 after two years of feasibility studies sponsored by ArtsBuild and Lyndhurst that showed performing arts groups lacked consistent, reliable rehearsal space.

There are more than 15 groups involved in the pilot, and the space is alive with all kinds of art — from dance to music, stand-up comedy to improv.

“Performing arts participants are saying this is the first time they don’t have to constantly think about space,” Harris said. “They can actually think about the art they’re making with and for their community.”

The church has been very gracious, Harris said. The congregation has shrunk to about 10 people over the years, he said, and they’re happy the space is being used again.

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Many years ago, the church had a thriving performing arts program. The first play that Harris, now a professional director, was ever in was performed in the building.

“They had another theater company in this room for about five years, then there was a dance company in the chalet … there were punk bands that were heard here till 1 in the morning. That’s the history of this building,” Harris said. “So we’re just bringing back to life not only the building, but what feels like what the dedicated purposes have been for this space.”

Groups book time in rehearsal spaces, and there are different sizes of rooms available. Groups pay on a monthly basis based on number of rehearsal hours needed for the month, and people involved help with routine deep cleans of the space.

A couple of the rehearsal rooms are undergoing small renovations to make the space be a better fit for each group.

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The organization has an agreement with the church to give a monetary contribution that helps cover the increased cost of utilities as a result of the group using the space but does not go towards church programming. Many of the rooms the organization is using have not been used in years, so it’s exciting to see life coming back into them, Harris said.

“I don’t want people to take away that this is a recruitment for St. Luke’s, or it’s even solely about St. Luke’s,” Harris said. “It’s meeting a community need, like they’ve (St. Luke’s) always done in their history.”

The Rev. Tim Jones, communications director for the Holston Conference of the United Methodist Church, said in an email that the conference is very excited about the arrangement.

Harris said he hopes the space fosters collaboration between performance arts groups in town, and those conversations are already happening.

“That’s the heart of this. You heard an organ playing (tonight), and if you were here last night, there would be Improv Chattanooga, Kaleidoscope or collectively / here dance and Scenic City Shakespeare. They’re all rehearsing at the same time,” Harris said. “So, when they’re done or they’re taking breaks, they’re around each other. That’s not happening anywhere else.”

Contact faith and family editor Kailee Shores at kshores@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6659.