From: D. David Brown, Executive Director, Pacific Northwest Ballet
[ website ]
July 15, 2004
Dick Collins
Executive Director
PACE
855 106th. Ave. NE
Suite 150
Bellevue, WA 98004
Dear Dick,
Pacific Northwest Ballet has been working with PACE since its inception in supporting the creation of a new performing arts venue in Bellevue. We are active proponents of this project as it will provide the potential to expand PNB's performance opportunities to a broader geographic area, serve a broader constituency with in-theatre education activities, and elevate the stature of the Eastside as a major player in building the quality of cultural life in the region.
We have been pleased with the initial technical design as the seating capacity of 2,000 is consistent with the size of audience required to make such performance by high quality arts organizations financially feasible, and the stage capabilities, although more modest than our primary home at the recently opened McCaw Hall, will nonetheless allow all but the largest of productions to be presented without compromise. We envision an expansion of our current performing season to include Bellevue as a regular addition multiple times in a year. Possibilities also exist to expand our already successful Seattle centric educational programs to embrace the Eastside and PACE could be a venue for elements of those programs.
PNB recently demonstrated its commitment to be a part of the Eastside Cultural community with the relocation and $3.5 million expansion of its Eastside School into the Francia Russell Center. This state of the art facility allows PNB to offer high quality dance instruction to students both young and old as well as a hub for dance education activities in Bellevue. Although PNB has been active on the Eastside for more than 15 years, this expansion demonstrates PNB's intention to be a more visible and supportive member of the Eastside arts community.
We support the creation of the Performing Arts Center Eastside and look forward to its opening.
Sincerely,
D. David Brown,
Executive Director
Pacific Northwest Ballet