Broadway tragedy averted

Chris Jaszczak has been on this little stretch off Broadway near Grand Circus Park forever. Like, living in the building's spacious second-floor loft since 1985. As in running his art and performance space on the ground level, 1515 Broadway, since 1987. In fact, he's lived on that block since December of 1979.

"When I came down here 31 years ago," says Jaszczak (pronounced JAZZ-ick), "I was talking about how it would become the kind of neighborhood that exists now. I felt it was inevitable, because I had traveled and seen the way things went with places like LoDo in Denver, Deep Ellum in Dallas, and I believed it was going to happen down here.

"I thought it was at the bottom — and it wasn't, it got progressively worse. It wasn't until 1987 to 1989 when it bottomed out."

The area was truly dismal, and dangerous.

"The opera house was last known as Grand Circus Theatre, and it was being demolished by neglect — abandoned, empty, decaying. The parking lot across street was an abandoned lot. The Milner Hotel was crack central. ... It was pretty bleak, particularly at night."

Operating a theater in a troubled neighborhood at a time when only the hardiest people would go downtown often involved convincing folks that it wouldn't be so bad to visit 1515. 

"People would read the reviews and call up and ask where we were, and I knew as soon as I told them there would be hesitation, trepidation, silence."

Which meant that a big part of Jaszczak's job back then was assuring people that they and their vehicles would be safe. Making sure that happened only added to his responsibilities.

But, somehow, he was able to hang on through all those lean years. The venue's longevity testifies to Jaszczak's vision of a community-supported space featuring local performers and artists. 

"I predicated this place on my belief that there's no shortage of talent in Detroit," Jaszczak says. "As long as you execute and don't overshoot, make sure you hit your audience, pay your bills after a show and do another one — that's how this place has operated. Other than the jeweler and the hatter, nobody's been here longer than me. I've always been self-supporting, and I've never gotten a grant, donation or subsidy."

It has been used as a theater, a studio, a sound stage and meeting hall, often breaking even. When it hasn't, Jaszczak paid the bills using personal income from his business arranging crews for large outdoor festivals, stadium concert shows and traveling exhibits. 

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