Give APE a chance with Castro Theatre
On a positive note, I love the passion my community has for issues that are happening, in this case, at the Castro Theatre ["Cultural district expresses concerns about new Castro Theatre plan," January 27]. But we also tend to jump the gun, dig in our heels (stilettos?), and get our knickers in a twist. Another Planet Entertainment taking over the programming of the Castro Theatre is a good example of that.
I personally work, or have worked, at multiple venues in San Francisco including the Palace of Fine Arts, ACT, SF Giants ballpark, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, Marines Memorial Theatre, and have worked on shows and events presented or produced by APE. They are a local company, fair in their hiring practices, respected in the industry, and fun to work with. I would venture to guess that a lot of Bay Area Reporter readers have attended APE events and may not even be aware of that.
Give them a chance, please.
In case you haven't noticed, the Castro is hurting. It can use some fresh, new ideas from companies like APE. We should be thanking them for taking a leap of faith, especially in these COVID times, and welcome them to the Castro.
The Castro Theatre stopped being just a movie house decades ago. There have been concerts, drag shows, special events (thank you Marc Huestis ... I got to meet Ann Miller and was there when Christina Crawford made her entrance from the back of the house waving a coat hanger!), tech conferences, movie premiers, etc., some of which APE was probably involved with presenting.
Yes, two-dozen folks showed up to protest, but I've spoken to hundreds of folks in the Castro who are thrilled that this is happening.
When the F Line was put in to the Castro, we heard "there goes the Castro" bringing in tourists (meaning "straight," don't get me started on that).
When the palm trees were put in on Market Street we heard "there goes the Castro" (this isn't Los Angeles — as if palm trees only grow in L.A.!?)
When the sidewalks in the Castro were widened and the rainbow crosswalks were installed at the intersection of 18th and Castro streets, we heard, "there goes the Castro" turning into Disneyland.
When bars and restaurants were allowed to build parklets, literally saving numerous small businesses from permanently closing down, we heard "there goes the Castro," we won't be able to park.
And guess what? The Castro survived and will continue to survive as long as we stay positive, stay open to new ideas, and don't let the negative nellies (said with love) get in the way.
And one more thing — please stop with the "straight bashing." We (LGBTQ+) didn't like it when that kind of thing was directed at us, and more than ever, we shouldn't be directing it at anyone else. F@#king grow up.
Peace, love, and laughter my peeps.
Joe Mac
San Francisco
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