The first act was a long one, the plot familiar. A small band of theater lovers wanted to save a ragtag, down-in-the-mouth school auditorium that had, for a time, been used as a theater.
The villains were "greedy developers" set on demolishing the beloved theater--not to mention the dreams of the theater lovers--so they could make lots of money.
With the Planning Commission's acceptance last week of the Old Town environmental impact report, the project moves on to the Town Council--and to the second act in the play that two years ago pitted the community's theater lovers against the new owners of Old Town.
Happily, as the play edges toward its climax and denouement, the plot has become more complex. It's moved beyond good guys and bad guys. It's no longer culture versus crass business.
The one-dimensional characters have changed their costumes from black and white to shades of gray.
The conflict, in other words, has moved from melodrama to drama.
Deke Hunter and Ed Storm aren't exactly opposed to a theater, it turns out; they're opposed to pouring millions of dollars into a retail center and having a major chunk of it tied up in a losing proposition.
They don't see how a theater could be anything but a money-loser. But Storm told the theater lovers--members of the recently reorganized Friends of the Arts--that he and his partner are willing to talk theater--if.
They're open to the idea if the theater lovers can come up with a tenant. They need some assurance that they won't end up with a big, empty theater that could have been put to more profitable use.
The theater lovers understand that. They know that if there is to be a theater, it's up to them to turn it into an attractive business proposition.
Megan Davidson, who has crusaded to preserve the auditorium from the start, heads up the new Friends of the Arts.
So far, she says, the group has worked quietly and behind the scenes. She says there are four theater groups interested, two of which are money-makers.
How will this little drama end? Unless there's a major cast change that brings an enthusiastic community into the act, the theater probably will end up as retail space.
Cultural programs seldom are viewed as money-makers. When we think of the arts, we generally think of subsidies.
It will take more than the dedication and hard work of a handful of people to return the Old Town Theater to its glory days, when it was home to the California Shakespeare Company. It will take commitment and money and clout from the community.
When the renovation and expansion of Old Town are complete, University Avenue will look very different. There will be many new retail outlets, most of them with headquarters outside of Los Gatos.
A community/regional theater would make a good addition to the complex. A theater, like the retail stores, would bring visitors to town. But, unlike the retail outlets, the theater would also serve as an important cultural resource for Los Gatans.
To work with Friends of the Arts, contact Megan Davidson, 356-7546.
This article appeared in the Los Gatos Weekly-Times, November 20, 1996.
©1996 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved