A thriving Chicano/Latino performing arts group in Denver is making plans to purchase a one-story cement building in order to expand its theater space.
Su Teatro Denver is one of the oldest theater groups of its kind in the West, having been established in 1971, and has since provided hundreds of original plays, ballets, and musical events.
Earlier this spring the organization purchased a 4,400-square-foot, two-story building at 659 Santa Fe Drive with the purpose of turning the more than 60-year-old structure into new facility space.
That purchase came with a price tag of $1.8 million, money that was secured through a community fundraising effort.
Now Su Teatro wants to expand some more in acquiring a nearby building at 930 West Seventh Avenue. That structure was built in 1966 and measures around 10,000 square feet. It is designated as a Class C building and underwent some renovation in 2000.
The reported purchase price for the second building is $2.9 million.
Both structures are in a part of Denver that has for more than a century been culturally important to the city’s Hispanic community, an importance that continues to grow as the Mile High City now boasts the seventh largest Hispanic population in the nation.
The formation of Su Teatro came, according to author Mark Barnhouse in his History Lover’s Guide to Denver, when “drama students broke away from standard forms and repertory to present politically charged original short plays and skits.”
By Garry Boulard
