La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club's Annex Theatre on E. 4th Street in the East Village section of New York will reopen Sept. 15 after a year-long renovation. The $3 million redo includes new heating and air conditioning and an elevator to bring the building up to the standards of the Americans With Disabilities Act.
Construction began in 1997. In addition to the above improvements, the renovation succeeded in preserving the theatre's wooden structures, tin siding and tin ceilings. The architect on the project was The Edelman Partnership.
La MaMa moved into the Annex Theatre in 1974. In the late 19th century, the building was used as a Yiddish theatre, then a venue for Italian theatre. During the 1950's and 1960's, it was the soundstage for the television program "The Naked City."
Theatrewise, the Annex will reopen with Ping Chong & Company's Kwaidan, a piece of puppet theatre based on three Japanese ghost stories. The show runs through Sept. 26.
-- By Robert Simonson