For Decades, Symphony Space Has United And Uplifted People Through The Arts

The first Symphony Space event was before it was officially called Symphony Space. The year was 1978 and two neighbors, conductor Allan Miller and Isaiah Sheffer, a playwright and director, rented a crumbling Manhattan movie theatre on Broadway and West 95th Street for a free 12-hour music festival for the community.

They called this epic musical blow-out Wall to Wall Bach. They printed makeshift programs and borrowed light bulbs and music stands. The idea was that anyone with an instrument could come and play alongside professionals like famed musicians Pinchas Zukerman and Eugenia Zukerman or members of the American Symphony Orchestra. Or those who wished could sing in the B Minor Mass choir.

“Over 6,000 people showed up. That’s the power of ‘yes.’ And people said, ‘I’ll play along.’ That, in and of itself, has its own kinetic energy,” says Symphony Space executive director Kathy Landau. “So this incredibly successful day on January 7, 1978, during the depths of winter, showed there was a need, an opportunity and that people wanted more of this.”

The event was so successful Miller and Sheffer wondered how they could deliver more. How could they continue the magic of having a cultural venue where art would unite people and transcend barriers?

And Symphony Space was born.

“Artists are our heart and soul, but community is our DNA,” says Landau who has been at the helm of Symphony Space for eight years. “Those two things together have been the North Star for us since the beginning. It’s really about nurturing that spirit to truly allow us to connect, to find ourselves and community at the same time—in ways that almost nothing besides the arts can.”

Since opening their doors countless artists have performed or presented on Symphony Space’s stages. It’s a go-to place for films, dance performances, book events with authors and music concerts like Patti LuPone’s upcoming show, Songs from a Hat.

Symphony Space’s eclectic programing is vast. It ranges from Sigourney Weaver hosting a 40th anniversary screening of Alien with a talkback to NT Live’s Vanya with Andrew Scott, which will be Off-Broadway this spring. “We really run the gamut,” says Landau. “Our multidisciplinarity is our greatest asset. And because they don’t have long runs they can be nimble and flexible. “We don’t have to plan three years out,” adds Landau. “We get to be responsive to the creative community in a way that is really a luxury in the times in which we’re living.”

In addition to the myriad performances Symphony Space has a robust education program that has been in place since the 1980s. “Before diversity was a common focus, or even part of the basic narrative of public education, Symphony Space’s director of education recognized that there was more than one history to tell that should be taught in New York City public schools,” says Landau. “So Global Arts was created to do just that. They take students on a journey of discovery and exploration through the arts and cultures of Africa, Asia, Latin America and Native America—during a time when that was really groundbreaking.”

Also, their free adult literacy program, All Write!, is offered in CUNY campuses, community centers, and in public libraries throughout New York City. “We use poetry and short fiction to teach literacy and we engage adult learners through storytelling,” says Landau. “Many of our students are recent immigrants or adults with interrupted formal educations.”

In fact, their semester begins with professional actors performing poems and short fiction that the students will study in their classrooms. For those who struggle with reading the opportunity to listen to writing aloud is game changing. “Everything we do is built around performance,” says Landau. “And at the end of the semester, the students’ own stories are read on stage by the same actors.”

All these decades later Symphony Space continues to hold onto their ideals from that first Wall to Wall Bach event. “Our embrace is wide, and we say, “come as you are,” both to our artists and our audiences. There’s no pretense, no pressure. This allows people to take risks alongside us, and gives great freedom to all involved—our artists and our audiences,” says Landau. “You’re coming to a place that is warm and welcoming, that says, ‘What do you want to do?’ and ‘Come do it with us.’”

Jeryl Brunner: During this post-Covid-19 time when theaters are still struggling to bounce back after being shuttered for so long, why do you believe Symphony space has thrived?

Kathy Landau: A lot of this is to the credit of those who came before me. We own our building outright. That is a great differentiator. We are not leveraged. We have no mortgage, no loans. That all predates me by a long shot, and it’s thanks to people who were deeply committed to the survival and sustainability of the organization. We have a board and a staff who were extraordinary in pivoting the minute we shut down. Within two weeks we were up and running with virtual programs—recorded and live via Zoom. We installed livestream equipment in both our theaters and brought the theater experience to people where they were. So we were able to continue—and offer a lot of it free.

“From our home to yours” was our approach. We wanted to bring the healing power of the arts to everyone during incredibly difficult times, and without barriers. It all comes back to community being our DNA. We worked really hard during that time to care for our relationships and to say to our artists, our audiences, our students, our educators, “We are here, and we are with you, and we will be with you throughout, until we can come together again.” Our being where we are today is thanks to the ingenuity and creativity of our teams and our creative family, as well as the patience of our board, who really saw past the immediate moment to a future that was viable.

Brunner: This may be like asking to pick your favorite child, but what are some “I-can’t-believe-this-happened” moments for you.

Landau: There are a ton of them. We had Rhiannon Giddens who did three evenings that I believe no one will forget. James McBride did an event last year for the Heaven and Earth Grocery Store in conversation with Colum McCann and a reading by Ato Blankson-Wood. The conversation and this author talking about his work and how much he spoke about music was riveting. Then I came to learn that James is an award-winning musician. I thought, this is exactly what we want to do with our residency program. So this season we will have James McBride for three evenings centered around his music.

One night at Selected Shorts, [the series where actors read stories by well-known and emerging writers], Calvin Leon Smith did a reading that moved the entire audience to tears. For the 35th anniversary of Selected Shorts, we commissioned 35 writers—David Sedaris, Dave Eggers, Edwidge Danticat, Elizabeth Strout, Carmen Maria Machado, Simon Rich, and many emerging voices—to create new work. Then we actually published a book of those stories, and we did a free Wall to Wall Selected Shorts where all 35 stories were read in one day by Liev Schreiber, Anika Noni Rose, Tony Shalhoub, Joan Allen and an exceptional line-up of artists. Also, we did additional commissions based on the short stories—dance pieces, musical pieces, an animated film—all throughout the day. Then there was last year’s Wall to Wall Prince. It was a glorious exploration and celebration of the artist’s work and legacy with over 80 artists performing and several thousand in the audience throughout the day.

Brunner: What is your dream for Symphony Space?

Landau: A winning lottery ticket? We’re living in incredibly challenging, fraught times, to state the obvious. But the dream—as we look to the future and approach our 50th anniversary—is to ensure that this organization is around for the next generation of artists, audiences, and students. Our deep commitment right now is to building strength at the foundation to allow the future to flourish. When the arts are allowed to flourish unencumbered, then we as people flourish. As the cultural ecosystem is shrinking, as so many theaters are struggling, we are really redoubling our commitment to being a thriving, vibrant, welcoming, and creative home for all.