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Molly and Paul Ruppert
Owners/Operators of
The Warehouse
Theatre
"My grandfather was born upstairs" says Paul
Ruppert, referring to the apartment above what had been Rupert Hardware, but
which is now part of the three-building complex that comprises the Warehouse
Theater, Gallery and Café. The property on 7th Street NW has been in the
family for 120 years, since Henry Ruppert set up business there. In
1994 Paul and his mother Molly started using some of the downstairs space to
present art in a gallery-like showcase. In 1996, Studio Secondstage's Serge
Seiden asked if he could use a back room to present one of that
developmental company's experimental pieces. (This was before Secondstage
had its own home and, for that matter, before Seiden had become the
Associate Artistic Producing Director of Studio Theatre.) Since then,
theatrical activities have become a major part of the bustling life of the
Warehouse, along with art, music and dance as well as food and drink from the
bar in the main lobby. Today the team of Molly and Paul Ruppert is an active
presence in the Potomac Region's arts community with Paul holding the title
Producing Artistic Director for the theater operations. |
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The space: Starting with a tiny back-room space seating about 20 in
1994, the Warehouse's theatrical facilities have steadily multiplied. Today,
there is the main stage with its 120 seats on risers, the 45 seat black box
called, appropriately enough "Second Stage" and the "Attic," a highly
flexible collection of rooms which can accommodate a small audience in any
of a number of configurations (one show has the audience following the
action from room to room). In addition, the tiny back room is still
occasionally used (SCENA used it last year for Carter Jahncke's solo show
The Lost Ones performed before
audiences of up to 15). Among the companies mounting shows in one or more of
the spaces are (or were) Charter, Cherry Red, Didactic, Gala, Hyacinth,
Renegade, The Rude Mechanicals, Tiny Ninja, Tsunami, Venus Theatre
Woolly Mammoth and SCENA.
Ruppert Hardware stood on
the site from before the turn of the last century. The buildings have seen
the change from horse and buggy to streetcars to subways. Today, the Mount
Vernon Square/7th Street/Convention Center stop on Metro's Green and Yellow
Lines is a block and a half away and the Gallery Place/Chinatown station on
the Red Line is about four blocks away. What was once a bustling commercial
thoroughfare has gone through many stages, the most recent being the
construction of the new Washington Convention Center across the street from
the theater. When asked if the opening of the convention center has
increased business at either the shows or the bar, Paul Ruppert says "Not
really. People attending multi-day events across the street tend to have
their evenings filled with banquets or receptions so they don't have time
for a show and don't need to come over for either a meal or a drink." The
completion of the construction, on the other hand, has made the destination
much more attractive for local audiences.
What began with the show
Seiden mounted in the small space in the back has grown to a complex of four
performance spaces, three of which are used for theater (the "Warehouse Next
Door" space is usually a venue for bands). The main theater at The Warehouse
is actually in the space that housed the wares of Ruppert Hardware. It is
rustic and utilitarian but works well as a theater. Paul Ruppert built the
platform stage and installed the risers as well as cutting back what had
been a second floor area but which now tempts set designers to include
balcony or second-story elements in their plans. The Second Stage space was
designed by Michael Stepowany as a flexible black-box facility.
The
main lobby sets the feel for the entire establishment. Its rustic wooden
floor, which was actually the floor of the hardware store, features an
inlaid glass Warehouse logo, one of three by Tim Tate and Erwin Timmers of
the Washington Glass School. The bar is adorned with wooden sculptures by
Tim Martin and the tables are the work of metal sculptor Peter Wood. The
walls have been taken back to original construction brick with its marks of
the structural elements no longer in place such as the stairs up to the
living quarters. Until two years ago, the facility was a Spring through Fall
theater due to the lack of heat but now, with air conditioning and heat
installed, theater is offered year round. The bar and cafe menu was added
two years ago.
Now the place is active year round. Very active
indeed. Over 450 theater and dance performances were given at the Warehouse in the
last year.
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