New Bronx digs for BAAD!

Dance artist Arthur Aviles, artistic director of BAAD! (Bronx Academy of Arts and Dance) sent this update on the the organization's move from its longtime Hunts Point location to a new home at Westchester Square.

Charles Rice-Gonzalez and Arthur Aviles
in front of their new arts building
on the grounds of St. Peter's Episcopal Church
(photo courtesy of Arthur Aviles)

BAAD! has been through a beautiful storm this summer.

First, I want to share that we have officially moved from our beloved Hunts Point. Through all the challenges this has posed for our organization, one of the shining silver linings has been the people and organizations who have stepped up, and in, to help us.

Since, Taconic/Denham, Wolf our current landlord, let us know about a year ago that they wouldn't be giving us a long term lease, and would only consider a one year extension at twice the rate of our current lease, we began our quest to find a new home. We have been humbled and uplifted by the support that has come our way.

After Taconic/Denham, Wolf created the conditions that forced us to leave, the Banknote. Denham, Wolf showed us a space and led us to believe that we'd be let out of our lease, we entered into a lease negotiation with St. Peter's Episcopal Church. As I sought help to raise money for a move that was not in my budget, St. Peter's offered a month of free rent and I asked Taconic for help with a free month or two. Instead, Taconic co-CEO, Charles Bendit, stated that since two years were on the lease, we needed to pay them to let us out. After being clear on our financial position he then brought that down to one year. (There is also precedence of Taconic/Denham Wolf paying a tenant to leave and finding them a space with Bronxworks led by Carolyn McLaughlin at that time, but for reasons I'm sure they have, they didn't extend that to Charles and me.)

Although being a small ($300,000) arts organization we would have preferred to be let out of our lease and paying double rent will be crippling to us (and they have a full understanding of that), they have the law on their side, and since we want to abide by the law, they have agreed to give us a lease termination with the conditions of paying them a maximum of 6 months rent, on a month by month basis, unless they find a tenant for our space before the six months are up.

There are many aspects to our story, including the classic David and Goliath one, with BAAD! being a small budget arts organization and essentially grappling with the multi-billion dollar Taconic Titans, as the media has called them, and although moving from Hunts Point and leaving the space we've built over 14 years has been difficult, to say the least, we decided to be as strategic as possible to keep providing a space to serve our artists and audiences.

We will be located at 2474 Westchester Avenue in Westchester Square in a gothic revivalist building on the grounds of St. Peter's Episcopal Church. It's a fully equipped theater.

As you know in the Bronx, several other groups have lost their spaces including the Rebel Diaz Art Collective and Casa Atabex, it's one of the ways progress in the borough is manifesting itself.

Charles and I know we can call on the Bronx Dance coalition community for help.  So we count you among our champions here in the Bronx. We have also gotten great support from other community members and audience who have said where you go, we will follow.

So, off we go to Westchester Square, to build a new temple for dance and the arts, and to expand our audience and make new inroads, and help make Westchester Square a cultural district (along with BCA and it's new building).  Although, we didn't wake up one day and decide to move, finding a wonderful new place to land has been exciting.

Charles and I hope you can visit our new home soon.  We are having an open house on Sunday, October 27 from 1pm to 6pm and will kick off our BlakTina Performance series on Saturday, November 2 at 8pm with a dance tribute to Whitney Houston called Love Will Save the Day.

We will have a few more events to invite folks into the new space and will keep you posted.

With respect, admiration and deep appreciation,
Arthur

Charles Rice-Gonzalez here, there, everywhere

And speaking of BAAD...

I wanted to link you to author/playwright Charles Rice-Gonzalez's calendar of readings (in support of his debut novel, Chulito: "about a tough, sexy hip hop-loving, young Latino man, coming out and coming of age in the South Bronx") and events, but I see that his site is not updated. Ahem...

Okay. So I'll just do a little copy-n-paste from his email announcement.

There's a lot here. So take your pick.

Wednesday, June 27 at 6:30pm
Reception, Reading, and Signing for Love, Christopher Street: Reflections of New York City edited by Thomas Keith
Hosted by Out Professionals and OP-LYNX
Essays about LGBT life in New York City, with Mark Ameen, Christopher Bram, Martin Hyatt, Fay Jacobs, Michele Karlsberg, Rev. Irene Monroe, Charles Rice-González, Bob Smith & Judy Gold, and Charlie Vázquez.
The LGBT Community Center, 208 W. 13th St., room 410
($10 general admission; $5 for Out Professional Members)

Thursday, June 28 at 6:30pm
MNN – Manhattan Neighborhood Network
Queers of Color: Visions, Transformations, and Journeys
This unique community dialogue features artists and activists in conversation about making change, current work and future goals.  Featured are Charan P. Morris, Poet and Spoken Word Artist;  Charles Rice-Gonzalez, Author of CHULITO and Co-Founder and Director of BAAD! The Bronx Academy of Arts and Dance; and Claudia Sofia Garriga Lopez, Activist and Artist, among others.  Free Event.

Friday, June 29 at 6:30pm
CHULITO reading and book signing
HAF - Hispanic AIDS Forum’s Latino Youth in Action
Charles Rice-Gonzalez is the guest speaker and will read from CHULITO.
HAF - 213 West 35th Street, 12th Floor - New York, NY 10001

Monday, July 9 at 6-8pm
Macondo Fellows at La Casa Azul Bookstore
Join NYC residents Charles Rice-Gonzalez, poet Ron Drummond, and Toni Margarita Plummer, with a special guest appearance by Levi Romero, Centennial Poet for New Mexico. This is a rare opportunity to hear all these Macondistas* together as they read poetry and prose and sign books. (*Fellows from the Macondo Writers’ Workshop founded by Sandra Cisneros.) La Casa Azul Bookstore is a new spot for literature and community events in El Barrio.  La Casa Azul Bookstore, 143 E. 103rd Street, New York, NY 10029 (Free event.)

Thursday, July 12 at 6:30pm
CHULITO reading and book signing
San Antonio Public Library – Mission Branch
Charles Rice-Gonzalez will read from CHULITO and sign books.
Mission Branch - 3134 Roosevelt Avenue, San Antonio, TX 78214 (Free event.)

July 15 - 21
Therapy of the Soutl for Men Who Love Men
Arnie Vargas (LCSW) leads this weekend of exploration and celebration in your tribe as a man-who-loves-men. The group will approach discussions from personal stories, drawing from political, sociological, psychological, and spiritual theories to discover who we are, where we are, and where we want to go. Instructors include Charles Rice-Gonzalez.  Retreat is in Provincetown, MA.  Visit http://ajvargas.blogspot.com/ or call Arnie Vargas at 1-800-314-7618.

August 31- September 3
Easton Mountain's Annual Labor Day Retreat
Charles Rice-Gonzalez will lead a writing workshop in this annual retreat that offers men space to take the risk of sharing their deepest inspirations and aspirations in large and small group activities that draw from personal inner beauty to create in a supportive community. Other workshops will include breath and movement, poetry, different expressions of art and playfulness. To register or for more info visit http://www.eastonmountain.com/programs/120831LaborDay.html

Save the date!
Sunday, September 23 (time TBA)
Brooklyn Book Festival
Borough Hall

Charles Rice-Gonzalez talks about "Chulito"

Charles Rice-Gonzalez--known to many of us as an activist and Executive Director of BAAD!--discusses his new novel, Chulito, about a young gay Puerto Rican man living in the South Bronx, in this wonderful interview with Maria Hinojosa of NPR's Latino USA.

Tough Love (12:03)

Aviles and Rice-Gonzalez update

Here's an update, just received, from Arthur Aviles and Charles Rice-Gonzalez. (See my original post, here, about the fire in their home.)

We want to thank everyone for their outpouring of love and support. We’re so fortunate to have a loving and powerful community around us and we apologize for not being able to respond to everyone.

We will get back to folks individually in addition to this e-mail, but one of the saving graces of this technology it allows us to say the same thing in one fell swoop, especially when each time we talk about "what happened" it brings back a lot of our pain and loss.

We’re thankful for the many offers we’ve had to stay in spare rooms, crash on couches, stay at guest homes and other accommodations. There were so many that they would support a "Charles and Arthur" gypsy tour for the next year, at least.

From Cassandra offering her place to us while she crashes with a friend, to the youth of the Bronx Pride Center organizing a bake sale, to Eva Yaa Asantewaa posting the info on her blog (http://infinitebody.blogspot.com/2008/10/fire-at-home-of-arthur-aviles.html), to Bill Aguado from the Bronx Council on the Arts's generous offers, to Elizabeth, Jorge and my mom and family offering their cars for us to get around and to the cards with checks or donations that have appeared out of the blue, we are moved to tears with every offer and every act. Arthur and I share the phone messages from our respective cell phones and the e-mails with each other and each voice, each note is received like a much needed hug.

We’re strong guys but this has been very difficult. And we miss Canela immensely.

Here is a general update:

• Mrs. Ross is settled in with Mr. & Mrs. Phillips who live across the street and have known Mrs. Ross for nearly all of the 50 years she has lived on Manida Street. If you know her and would like to send a note they can be sent c/o Mr. & Mrs. Phillips, 852 Manida Street, Bronx, NY 10474.
• Arthur and I are staying at a furnished apartment that Pregones Theatre in the Bronx has for visiting artists. It’s private and quiet and a short bus ride to BAAD! Jorge, Alvan and everyone at Pregones have been great lending support and stepping back to give us space.
• We are dealing with Canela’s remains and will have a small ceremony at some point to honor her life and all the love that she lavished on us and the love we gave to her for the 9 ½ years that she was with us.
• Arthur and I are helping Mrs. Ross navigate the logistics and legalities following the fire - dealing with public adjusters, her insurance agency, etc.
• The damage needs to be assessed and catalogued by the public adjuster and Mrs. Ross’s insurance company before we know what is salvageable from our place.
• As you may know, insurance companies strive to pay as little as possible, so until the adjuster battles it out, we won’t know how quickly our apartment will be habitable again.
• Thankfully the physical damage to our apartment didn’t go beyond the busted windows and skylights, several holes in walls through out the apartment, the destruction of some property and the smoke damage to all the clothes, coats, linens and furniture. (The Red Cross was helpful with tips on how to salvage clothes, so we’ve been able to get some clothes out and clean them.) But it could be several months before we are back in our home.
• Arthur and I are now working to balance our lives by returning to the joy of the work we do at BAAD! and with creating and expressing our respective arts, taking up our other responsibilities while we deal with all the post fire logistics to support Mrs. Ross.

So for now, in response to all your offers for assistance, we are in a ‘holding pattern’ and will have a better idea of what to ask for in the coming week or weeks. But things that may come up are help cleaning our place to sort out what is trash and what is salvageable before the official cleaning company comes in to remove the debris. Then we can assess what we need to have replaced in terms of furniture, beds, coats, etc. Mrs. Ross’s property is covered to a certain extent with her insurance, but we, as her tenants, are not, and unfortunately we didn’t have renter’s insurance. (Which we discovered is not that high, but that’s relative.)

So for now, we will hold your good thoughts, prayers and offerings close to our heart. They have all been very healing. We hope to see you at BAAD! or around soon. And with all the love, support and resources Arthur and I will get through this.

With Love,
Charles and Arthur

Fire at home of Arthur Aviles

Word has just come in about a fire last night at the Bronx home of dancer-choreographer Arthur Aviles and his partner, writer-publicist Charles Rice-Gonzalez.

Arthur and Charles--who were away at a class at BAAD!--are safe but, sadly, their dog, Canela, did not make it out. Canela's barking was what first alerted their landlady and saved her life. The landlady's efforts to save Canela in turn were unsuccessful, and the dog died of smoke inhalation.

As I learn more, I will keep IB readers updated about how Arthur and Charles are faring and how the community can offer support.

In an email statement about the incident, the couple wrote:

Mrs. Ross's apartment was completely destroyed and our place wasn't directly damaged by the fire, but they had to break through walls, and the roof and break out all the windows in every room and trashed the house, there's water damage everything smells of smoke.

So, we have a lot to deal with today and over the next few days including going to the Red Cross. They will help us find a place to live.

We are feeling so many things at the moment and are working hard to think clearly.

We know that people will want to help, and we are not sure how to respond. We are moving very slowly.

The bright light in all this is that Mrs. Ross is fine and strong. And Arthur and I have each other (and the turtles).

And we have beautiful people in our lives.