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Cultural hub is more than dream
(by Barbara Christian - August 17, 2011)
WINDOW ON MAIN STREET, BY BARBARA CHRISTIAN
Cultural hub is more than dream
Remember a few years ago when we first heard about Chagrin Falls' newly identified destiny? That of an art and culture hub for the region. Remember how we smiled and thought, "Well, isn't that a nice?" Remember how some of us snickered and said, "Yeah, right."
Well, truth to tell, Chagrin Falls as an art and culture hub did not require much of a stretch. Our town has always been thus in its own low-key way. What's new is village government getting involved by forming an arts and culture commission to guide the fortunes of our refocused image.
Politicians viewed this as good business. When the village raises the arts and culture flag, it attracts visitors who spend money, boost the local economy and tell their friends what a great and cultural place Chagrin Falls has become. It's what you call symbiosis.
OK, so local government didn't do such a hot job on what was supposed to be multi-use development on West Orange Street -- the one that was to present a vibrant gateway to the village. But that's another story we know too well. Instead, we are here to tell you the self-proclaimed prophecy for a culturally active Chagrin Falls is alive and well.
Let us count the ways, beginning on Bell Street with the Valley Art Center, where, last Friday, nearly 200 artists and art lovers showed up to celebrate 40 years with a bash appropriately named "Imagine." Can anyone imagine an arts and culture hub without the art center?
While the party was held to look back and give a nod to the founding of that venerable visual-arts institution, it also gave itself a well-deserved pat on the back for what it has achieved in the recent past. Specifically, the inside-out renovation of the Bell Street gallery, classrooms, pottery studio and retail space. And VAC raised the funds and accomplished the task between 2007-2011, at the height of our Great Recession.
While we are on the subject of venerable, another mainstay, the Chagrin Valley Little Theatre on River Street is also on the grow as it begins its 82nd season. It is raising funds and has begun to expand into the "red barn" building next door. CVLT also has a firm option to buy the Shields Building to its immediate west. That building already is home to the theater's River Street Playhouse, where lesser-known works are staged.
While VAC and CVLT are the two biggies, arts and culture wise in our town, there is so much more. Chagrin Arts Foundation presents year-round dance and music programming and is a second summer home to the Chautauqua Institution's lecture series. Valley Lutheran Church holds a public chamber music series each year, and Chagrin Falls High School is a magnet for the region's performing arts students. just to name a few.
New on the culture scene and another reason why Chagrin Falls is an arts and culture standout is the Chagrin Documentary Film Festival, which is getting ready for its second season in October with over 90 short and feature-length documentaries from around the world.
This newbie not only has attracted a regional audience but the attention of the Ohio Arts Council, which awarded the festival a grant after ranking it fifth out of 80 applicants!
Enough said. Can we all agree Chagrin Falls is achieving its cultural destiny, and can we also all agree our town isn't just for ice cream anymore.
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