Not too long ago, a friend and I drove from the northshore to catch a free movie screening at this run down, danky, humid garage - the kind that might host a kidnapping. And it was fun. The Alamo Underground, named for it's architectural similarity to The Alamo, was an ambitious, community driven venue for artists of all kinds. I only ever attended one event (a "Battle Royale" screening), but from what I observed, the people behind the operation were pretty serious about becoming an alternative space for creativity. I hadn't heard from the group for months, until the other day:
The Alamo Underground got it's start in 2006 (post Katrina) as an underground theater operated inside an old horse stable. It had to shut its doors in 2008. In 2010, I found the treasure and resurrected the space [with great help] for movie nights, live music, local events, and fundraisers. Movie nights were free and bands worked for tips. It was a lot of hard work, turning a swamp infested roach eaten space into an underground community, but it was done.
From August 2010 until April 2011, the Alamo greeted great New Orleans talent such as Aurora Nealand, Debauche, Tuba Skinny, Never Ever, Tom Worell, as well as visiting acts such as David Bazan and Zeina Mokaiesh.
Then the roof collapsed.
The people behind The Alamo Underground have just started a kickstarter page, and hope to re-open in November:
Now, I have the opportunity to re-open the Alamo on the up and coming Freret Street. The space is connected to La Nuit Theater- which got its start as a speakeasy theater for local comics.
New Orleans has a surge of amazing talent operating underground, in speakeasies and abandoned building. The idea is to have a collective venue for these like minded people. A bagel bar will be constructed courtesy of Sugerman's Bagel Speakeasy, and local artists will display their art for reasonable prices. Freret Street currently has little-to no live local music acts, even though the street is permitted for such use.
I haven't seen the new property, but I'm really excited about this. Aside from being a new performance space for bands like Tuba Skinny, Egg Yolk Jubilee and Arajay, we might also see unique film events, like a performance of "Gravity Was Everywhere Back Then" or Crispin Glover screening either of his "It" films. Along with Nola DriveIn, it looks like New Orleans might be seeing a slight surge in community/guerrilla film screenings.
As of this posting, $870 have been raised. Help them reach their $4,000 goal. Every little bit counts.
