The Space exists to build a safe, positive community for people of all ages through music and the arts. Physically, we are a listening room venue located in an unlikely industrial park in a sleepy suburb of a major city in Connecticut. So we definitely have that whole mystery thing going for us.
We're somewhat small in venue size, but we house a whole lot of love and a whole lot of decorations. You can spend a few months mentally cataloguing all the weird random things hanging from our walls and ceilings. (You can see some of these things on our monthly postcards. And we even sell some of it in our Vintage Boutique (The Attic) upstairs.
The Space is basically halfway between an underground arts collective and a sticky floor rock venue. There's carpet, a staff of awesome volunteers, couches galore, and over 100 kinds of tea. There's also rock and roll, folk, acoustic orchestras, independent film, funk, computer games, indie shows, and more happening on our stage.
Southern Connecticut and New Haven in particular has a jumpin', bumpin' music and arts scene. City folk, colleges, high schools...there's a lot of creativity flying around just within a 20 mile radius, and we want to be a comfortable, safe environment for it all. We're not teetotalers ourselves - having a drink with your favorite band can be a great way to spend an evening - but if that's ALL there is then that can get frustrating. Sometimes folks just want to listen and relax. In turn, most performers want nothing more than for people to be paying attention to what they have to say. Our weekly open mic began with the notion of a supportive sanctuary, and luckily it still remains that way.
Furthermore, no alcohol also means we can remain all-ages, be a safe comfortable hangout for the kids in the area, and an alternative for college students who don't feel like going to the neighborhood bar for the third night in a row.
And yes, we could sell alcohol and probably make a lot of money, but that's not the purpose of The Space. (Actually, if we wanted to make money we wouldn't be in music at ALL.)
