TIME & SPACE PROVED UNLIMITED IN PANDEMIC
Hudson’s longtime arts couple made most out of 2020
Linda Mussmann and Claudia Bruce insist that they’re artists not entrepreneurs. It’s true that their lifelong enterprise known as Time & Space Limited is officially a nonprofit arts organization. But considering the nimble, thrifty and industrious way that they’ve sustained the organization over the last 45 years and especially during the current pandemic, there’s plenty of evidence that the married couple has business savvy.
Also a big heart. In mid-march of last year, shortly after they ceased all programming in the TSL building in downtown Hudson due to pandemic restrictions, Mussmann and Bruce along with two staffers got busy cooking meals for folks who’d suddenly found themselves unemployed. Contributions and sponsorships came in from the neighboring Club Helsinki and from the Columbia County Department of Social Services, among others. Several dozen volunteers became the delivery fleet that ultimately distributed more than 5,000 meals over the course of four months.
“When COVID hit so fast, it was unbelievable,” says Mussmann. “Our instinct was to be as creative and inventive as possible in the spirit of service and helping. To completely close our doors would have been difficult for us and the community.”
“We’re artists, we improvise,” says Bruce. “When something doesn’t work, you think on your feet.”
As an organization, Time and Space was born in the free-spirited environment of downtown Manhattan in the early ‘70s. Mussmann and Bruce were part of the avant garde theater scene that included Mabou Mines, the Wooster Group and Judson Dance Theater. After making it through the '80s, they came to realize that the economics just didn’t work for remaining in the city. The final blow was when a $10,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts came along with an anti-obscenity clause. They refused it and have stayed away from grant writing ever since.
Hudson was still affordable when the couple arrived in 1991 and rented a 9,000square-foot former bakery on Columbia Street. Within a few years they purchased the building for $150,000.
“People were shocked we’d pay that, but we were from New York City. And it came with a parking lot. We now know that parking lots are like gold,” recalls Mussmann.
To finance the purchase they took out a mortgage but didn’t realize until it was too late that it was a balloon mortgage. In five years they’d have to refinance and go through the expensive closing process all over again. Mussmann wouldn’t have that and set the goal of paying off the full debt within five years.
Upon meeting that self-imposed deadline, they held a mortgage-burning. Being artists, they made it into a grand event. Friends and supporters were invited and given copies of the mortgage that got tossed into a giant bonfire. The city’s Fire Department was also in attendance, just in case.
TSL operates on an annual budget of roughly $400,000 that comes primarily from contributions, in the form of memberships, and from earned income, mostly ticket sales. In any given year 700 to 800 members contribute $40 or more. There are no special perks for members, only gratitude. “People believe in what we’re doing,” says Bruce.
“We moved to Hudson to get away from the grant game. Earned income is our goal and how we’ve made it work,” says Mussmann.
While the programming mix at TSL has shifted and changed over the years, films and high definition streaming have been the main activity for at least a decade. In 2007, TSL purchased and installed special satellite dishes in order to stream live broadcasts from the Metropolitan Opera. It’s become a signature offering for the venue and the 24 screenings per season consistently sell out. The intimate 100seat TSL theater happens to be the smallest venue to participate in the broadcasts.
Speaking of what’s on the TSL roof, there are 78 new solar panels up there. Wanting to be self-sustaining and free from fossil fuels, Mussmann and Bruce buckled down and raised $80,000 for the installation, which was being completed just as the epidemic set in. “That involved roof repair, not a cheap thing,” says Mussmann. “We’re hoping this summer it won’t be so expensive to run the AC.”
There are structural changes going on inside as well. The cafe space has been turned into a gallery. It’s a loss for audience members, once they’re allowed to return, but safety comes before convenience these days. “I don’t want to encourage people to unmask, but maybe we’ll have popcorn and soda outside,” says Mussmann.
Always looking for new opportunities for more earned income, the couple has recently opened two shops in the building’s large basement – the Stuff Store and the Book Store. The former is exactly what the name says: odds and ends, white elephants and household essentials. The latter is, surprisingly, Hudson’s only used bookstore and it will likely become a draw. A substantial inventory is already in place thanks to the generosity of a bibliophile who is donating his entire collection. “We haven’t gotten it all yet, but it will be close to 10,000 books. The deluge is coming and we’re embracing it,” says Mussmann. Bruce adds, “People love to read and our members are smart and well read.”
Starting the first weekend in May, the treasured parking lot is being put to use for an open air market with sundry vendors of crafts, vintage clothing, antiques, jewelry, and the like. Film screenings and concerts will happen throughout the summer, most with free admission. Jazz percussionist Bobby Previte will be appearing twice a month through September. Coming up on Saturday, May 29, is an evening with contemporary musicians Cassandra Jenkins and Wyndham Garnett.
The musical acts will be performing on a portable stage that Mussmann and Bruce built for last summer’s offerings. The couple seems to enjoy building and fixing things like stages or benches. They’ve taken it upon themselves to periodically tend and repair the public benches at the Amtrak station and the Department of Motor Vehicles. Some years back, there was a youth program, the TSL Bench Project.
Last year they designed a line of wooden benches available in four different colors and named it Founder’s Edition. With prices ranging from $225 to $475 (depending on the size), the collection has been a hit. “They’re selling like hot cakes. We had to go back to lumber yard,” says Bruce.
Another workshop endeavor is lamp repair, a specialty for Mussmann, who says, “I have a habit of fixing lamps.” Whether it’s art, business or public service, Mussmann and Bruce are willing to roll up their sleeves and get to work.
“We’re not a big show but we’re very creative and we all do lots of jobs. Claudia and I do 10 jobs each,” says Mussmann.
“Linda does 15,” says Bruce. “We’re hard to stop.”
▶