"It was crunch time before one of the East Bay's most iconic landmarks, the Henry J. Kaiser Center for the Arts, was set to open its doors once more, a century after its construction and two decades after the venue was shuttered. Within the building's awe-inspiring 19th-century French-style architecture, in a makeshift backroom office space, a small group of weary-eyed workers hunched over laptops on shared desks, preparing for the public presentation of its new look."
""and they talk about their memories with this space, that's what has kept me in it. It's what I love about doing this." The venue's triumphant return this past week saw workers pushing through graveyard shifts to navigate the flurry of events: a Tina Turner-themed musical, a roller-skating party, a free community festival, a Children's Fairyland puppet show, a formal ribbon-cutting by Mayor Barbara Lee and a headlining performance by illusionist Scott Silven."
The Henry J. Kaiser Center for the Arts in Oakland reopened after being closed for two decades following a roughly $100 million restoration by Orton Development. Workers in a makeshift office prepared for a 72-hour grand reopening that included a Tina Turner-themed musical, roller-skating party, community festival, Children's Fairyland puppet show, ribbon-cutting by Mayor Barbara Lee and a headlining illusionist. Nonprofit managers will operate the three-story, 215,000-square-foot venue. CEO Terri Trotter described visitors' memories as a sustaining reason for her work. The facility features a hardwood arena, a 1,350-seat Calvin Simmons theater and lakeside banquet spaces, and is seen as a test of Oakland's economic recovery.
Read at The Mercury News
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