Reviving Space

If you're looking for a venue for your Poison cover band to perform other than your mother's living room, the Downtown Tempe Community might have your solution.

MADCAP Theater, otherwise known as the Mill Avenue District Community Arts Project, finds its home in the vacant movie theater left by the former Harkins Centerpoint 11 in a courtyard on Mill Avenue and Seventh Street in Downtown Tempe.

The venue will rent space for many events, including live music performances, corporate meetings, independent film screenings, theater performances, lectures and more.

Deposits to rent a space will range anywhere from $200 dollars for a small theater to $450 for the largest. Once renters sell their first 200 tickets, 20 percent of ticket sales will go back to the theater.

MADCAP is only looking to earn enough money to sustain itself, says Nancy Hormann, executive director of the Downtown Tempe Community, with air conditioning being its largest cost.

After a fresh coat of paint, steam cleaning and a few other repairs, MADCAP is set to open its first three theaters in early June.

Some of the theaters will feature a large white screen used for projecting movies, PowerPoint presentations and other multimedia, while others will feature a full stage for live performances.

Lighting and all other considerations that go into a live show will be provided by the renter. That way, customers can customize their show while MADCAP keeps costs down, says Casaundra Brown, a spokeswoman for the Downtown Tempe Community.

MADCAP offers all of the same concessions that the previous theater had, including popcorn, soda and desserts, but there is one added amenity. After the theater is up and running for three months, DTC will be looking into a liquor license to sell beer and wine.

The theater is still looking for sponsors for each individual theater and the entire complex, ranging anywhere from $5,000 for a small theater to $75,000 for MADCAP itself.

When Harkins Centerpoint closed just over a year ago with the opening of a new theater at Tempe Marketplace, the Downtown Tempe Community jumped at the chance to do something with the open space. Just over six months ago, the organization came up with the idea for an open, "raw" venue where anyone can perform at a small cost.

The DTC is hoping the MADCAP Theater will bring a new, fresh vibe to Mill Avenue. After Harkins closed and the luxury high rise Centerpoint Condominiums went into bankruptcy, it left most of the courtyard on Mill Avenue and Seventh Street vacant, leaving many surrounding businesses struggling because of a lack of foot traffic.

"Restaurants on Seventh Street will definitely benefit from this, since people can grab a dinner and a show," Brown says. "[MADCAP] gives people a reason to come down here. It makes it more of a destination."