Rescue Roof: Repairs to Historic, Vibrant Theatre
Donation protected
The Peñasco Theatre, Northern New Mexico’s only solar-powered adobe theater, urgently needs your help to repair extensive roof leaks that are compromising the artists-in-residence experience and causing irreversible erosion to the historical adobe structure. In addition to overhauling the existing roof, the Theatre wants to build an additional, small residency space that will expand private housing for artists-in-residence and will alternatively serve as a rentable space to help sustain theatre costs. Our goal is $20,000 in one month!
Details on How the Money Will Be Used:
The Theatre roof has been resurfaced and patched and patched again, and now it needs a more permanent fix. During one of Northern New Mexico’s wettest winters in recent memory, the residency’s roof is leaking into the kitchen and other spaces in the structure. Not only compromising the integrity of the structure, the leaks render the residence space unusable. We will be extending the graded roof line to avoid any future water hazards while keeping the historical cohesion of the original structure along with the inspiring view of the forested landscapes.
By building the studio space, the Peñasco Theatre will be offering an expanded and private residency where an artist may silently excavate their soul or nourish an upcoming performance. As the testimonies below exude, our artistic respites are invaluable to our guests, and we want to provide them with more creative space! The residency space will alternatively expand our rental capacity which invites visitors to enjoy the Peñasco Theatre and Sugar Nymphs Bistro, the nearby local communities (overflowing with artist studios, small businesses, organic farms, the National Museum and Library Service award-winning Embudo Valley Library, the community-owned Dixon Food Coop, and more), and explore the surrounding high desert landscape. Finally, your aid will also help initiate the Theatre in developing a broader, more sustainable plan for the property.
Artist-in-Residency:
The Peñasco Theatre’s artist-in-residency is one of Northern New Mexico’s most hidden jewels. Over the past decades, the self-directed, non-competitive residency has welcomed hundreds of visiting artists from across the world to incubate and work within the traditional adobe walls of our comfortable and affordable housing. During these open-ended residencies, artists may choose to teach workshops or perform for the public. Past shows have included solo dance pieces, large group aerial/stilt shows, multi-media presentations, puppet shows, multi-company collaborations, and physical theatre. Many artist-in-residences have offered free shows to the nearby Peñasco Elementary and Middle Schools, providing youth with vivid and thought-provoking performances as well as fanciful entertainment. Also, we receive no institutional or foundation funding to support this residency program.
Artist-in-Residence Testimony:
“Peñasco Theatre is a creative oasis where it is impossible not to feel inspired. What’s unique about Peñasco Theater is its inviting layout as well as the enchanted scenery and nature that surrounds it. Engulfed in an artistic community, Peñasco Theater is just a short drive away from bigger towns like Santa Fe and Taos… During my residency at The Peñasco Theater I worked on multiple projects and was able to accomplish so much over a short period of time. The multipoint grid, functional mats and surrounding environment contributed greatly to the success of the residency. I am so glad I spent time in Peñasco developing my work. The experience was unforgettable and I would recommend creating theatrical artists pay Peñasco Theater a visit at some point in their career.”
– Pamela Donohoo, Director, Choreographer, International Performing Artist: Aerialist, Dancer, Acrobat, and Gymnast
“The Peñasco Theater is an inclusive space and beautifully supportive community. Our collective went in with the freedom to focus our time and energy on anything we felt we needed. I’m a photographer by nature but also focus on video, performance, and installation work. While most artists working in these mediums would prefer working in a space with a multitude of technological needs, I found the residency at the theater to be the most beneficial time I’ve had in my artistic career. The energy surrounding you allows for a spiritual awakening. Themes within my work that I once couldn’t speak to have become important structures in building new languages to communicate in new projects. I’m so thankful for my time in Peñasco. For the time to think, reflect and look inside my soul for answers. This residency gave me the time to just be which is what a lot of artists need to continue to create.”
- Le’Andra LeSeur, Multidisciplinary Artist, 2019 SCAD40 Prize Winner
“My time at the artist residency at the Peñasco Theatre was truly special, and a much needed getaway from the fast pace of New York City. Everyone who welcomed us there was inspiring and filled with positive, creative energy. The cozy house, with its mountain views and its warmth from the wood-stove fire, was the perfect remote place to reflect on life and work on writing my screenplay. The option to participate in all sorts of workshops from ariel lessons, to speaking with local artists, to teaching screenwriting to 8th graders, also offered a sense of community outside of my personal time creating. My experience in Peñasco nourished my soul, and for that I will be forever grateful.”
- April Maxey, Award Winning Writer and Director, Freelance Director of Photography and Editor.
Background:
The original adobe theatre, which resides on the ancestral homelands of the Tiwa-speaking and vibrant Picuris people, was hand built in Peñasco by Amado Roybal almost 80 years ago. The surrounding communities gathered to dance to Northern New Mexican melodies, watch the melodramas of Mexican movies, and share stories and knowledge that have saturated the valley for several centuries. The original projector stands in the foyer as a testament to the continuity of community cultural engagement and sparks memories for many Peñasceros-- who came to the theatre as young folks with their families or for a first date in the back row.
Today, the solar-powered Peñasco Theatre embraces a continuum of local and national artists who gather to generate provocative live performances in various disciplines including aerial arts, stilts, dance, burlesque, and physical theatre. The theatre is home to a beloved 19-year-old youth interdisciplinary afterschool and a summer arts program combining aerial arts, stilt-walking, acrobatics, puppetry, dance, and visual arts. The Theatre is stewarded by the Peñasco Theatre Collective- an intergenerational and non-hierarchical collective of individuals who identify as queer, trans, black, indigenous, xicanx, immigrant, Jewish, and working parents. The Collective is dedicated to fostering community building, collective empowerment, and social transformation through the arts. The Peñasco Theatre building also houses the scrumptious, women-owned Sugar Nymphs Bistro- a favorite among tourists and locals alike.
Details on How the Money Will Be Used:
The Theatre roof has been resurfaced and patched and patched again, and now it needs a more permanent fix. During one of Northern New Mexico’s wettest winters in recent memory, the residency’s roof is leaking into the kitchen and other spaces in the structure. Not only compromising the integrity of the structure, the leaks render the residence space unusable. We will be extending the graded roof line to avoid any future water hazards while keeping the historical cohesion of the original structure along with the inspiring view of the forested landscapes.
By building the studio space, the Peñasco Theatre will be offering an expanded and private residency where an artist may silently excavate their soul or nourish an upcoming performance. As the testimonies below exude, our artistic respites are invaluable to our guests, and we want to provide them with more creative space! The residency space will alternatively expand our rental capacity which invites visitors to enjoy the Peñasco Theatre and Sugar Nymphs Bistro, the nearby local communities (overflowing with artist studios, small businesses, organic farms, the National Museum and Library Service award-winning Embudo Valley Library, the community-owned Dixon Food Coop, and more), and explore the surrounding high desert landscape. Finally, your aid will also help initiate the Theatre in developing a broader, more sustainable plan for the property.
Artist-in-Residency:
The Peñasco Theatre’s artist-in-residency is one of Northern New Mexico’s most hidden jewels. Over the past decades, the self-directed, non-competitive residency has welcomed hundreds of visiting artists from across the world to incubate and work within the traditional adobe walls of our comfortable and affordable housing. During these open-ended residencies, artists may choose to teach workshops or perform for the public. Past shows have included solo dance pieces, large group aerial/stilt shows, multi-media presentations, puppet shows, multi-company collaborations, and physical theatre. Many artist-in-residences have offered free shows to the nearby Peñasco Elementary and Middle Schools, providing youth with vivid and thought-provoking performances as well as fanciful entertainment. Also, we receive no institutional or foundation funding to support this residency program.
Artist-in-Residence Testimony:
“Peñasco Theatre is a creative oasis where it is impossible not to feel inspired. What’s unique about Peñasco Theater is its inviting layout as well as the enchanted scenery and nature that surrounds it. Engulfed in an artistic community, Peñasco Theater is just a short drive away from bigger towns like Santa Fe and Taos… During my residency at The Peñasco Theater I worked on multiple projects and was able to accomplish so much over a short period of time. The multipoint grid, functional mats and surrounding environment contributed greatly to the success of the residency. I am so glad I spent time in Peñasco developing my work. The experience was unforgettable and I would recommend creating theatrical artists pay Peñasco Theater a visit at some point in their career.”
– Pamela Donohoo, Director, Choreographer, International Performing Artist: Aerialist, Dancer, Acrobat, and Gymnast
“The Peñasco Theater is an inclusive space and beautifully supportive community. Our collective went in with the freedom to focus our time and energy on anything we felt we needed. I’m a photographer by nature but also focus on video, performance, and installation work. While most artists working in these mediums would prefer working in a space with a multitude of technological needs, I found the residency at the theater to be the most beneficial time I’ve had in my artistic career. The energy surrounding you allows for a spiritual awakening. Themes within my work that I once couldn’t speak to have become important structures in building new languages to communicate in new projects. I’m so thankful for my time in Peñasco. For the time to think, reflect and look inside my soul for answers. This residency gave me the time to just be which is what a lot of artists need to continue to create.”
- Le’Andra LeSeur, Multidisciplinary Artist, 2019 SCAD40 Prize Winner
“My time at the artist residency at the Peñasco Theatre was truly special, and a much needed getaway from the fast pace of New York City. Everyone who welcomed us there was inspiring and filled with positive, creative energy. The cozy house, with its mountain views and its warmth from the wood-stove fire, was the perfect remote place to reflect on life and work on writing my screenplay. The option to participate in all sorts of workshops from ariel lessons, to speaking with local artists, to teaching screenwriting to 8th graders, also offered a sense of community outside of my personal time creating. My experience in Peñasco nourished my soul, and for that I will be forever grateful.”
- April Maxey, Award Winning Writer and Director, Freelance Director of Photography and Editor.
Background:
The original adobe theatre, which resides on the ancestral homelands of the Tiwa-speaking and vibrant Picuris people, was hand built in Peñasco by Amado Roybal almost 80 years ago. The surrounding communities gathered to dance to Northern New Mexican melodies, watch the melodramas of Mexican movies, and share stories and knowledge that have saturated the valley for several centuries. The original projector stands in the foyer as a testament to the continuity of community cultural engagement and sparks memories for many Peñasceros-- who came to the theatre as young folks with their families or for a first date in the back row.
Today, the solar-powered Peñasco Theatre embraces a continuum of local and national artists who gather to generate provocative live performances in various disciplines including aerial arts, stilts, dance, burlesque, and physical theatre. The theatre is home to a beloved 19-year-old youth interdisciplinary afterschool and a summer arts program combining aerial arts, stilt-walking, acrobatics, puppetry, dance, and visual arts. The Theatre is stewarded by the Peñasco Theatre Collective- an intergenerational and non-hierarchical collective of individuals who identify as queer, trans, black, indigenous, xicanx, immigrant, Jewish, and working parents. The Collective is dedicated to fostering community building, collective empowerment, and social transformation through the arts. The Peñasco Theatre building also houses the scrumptious, women-owned Sugar Nymphs Bistro- a favorite among tourists and locals alike.
Organizer and beneficiary
Adrienne Rosenberg
Organizer
Ranchos de Taos, NM
Alessandra Ogren
Beneficiary
