Parking Lot Theatre aims to bring drive-ins to neighborhoods
When things began shutting down in early March because of the coronavirus pandemic, Anne Koller and Manny Lara talked about how the lockdown was going to hurt Milwaukee’s creative community, and the community in general. And what they could do about it.
The two community activists saw their answer in an empty parking lot.
“We have parking lots, we are able to be in our cars, and we crave entertainment,” said Koller, an artist and emotional-wellness consultant. Why not put them all together?
Parking Lot Theatre, inspired by that empty expanse of concrete, is a community-based, pop-up drive-in movie and concert experience aimed at Milwaukee neighborhoods. The idea is for the events, staged in parking lots in the city, to tap local food vendors, performers and even filmmakers to bring people together for entertainment in a way that’s safe and in tune with the social-distancing needs of the pandemic.
“People still want to be safe,” said Lara, director of human resources at Progressive Community Health Centers and a member of the boards of several local arts groups. “… They want to go out, and they want to be social, but they want to be safe.”
“People still love drive-ins … and there are tons of parking lots,” Koller said.
Parking Lot Theatre staged its inaugural event last month.
“We think this can … bring people together safely,” Koller said.
‘Comfortable … and a little bit normal’
Thanks to the built-in distancing, drive-ins are having a moment. In less than a month, the Milwaukee area went from having none to as many as five in operation.
But Parking Lot Theatre has more than selling tickets in mind.
Koller and Lara got started with a query on social media — basically, “Is anyone out there into this?” — and got more than 10,000 responses. So, with project manager Natasha Coe, they began talking to different neighborhood organizations looking for locations, looking for sponsors to help promote events, and tapping what Lara called “that ecosystem of entertainment” for performers and support.
Their timing was pretty good: On May 11, Gov. Tony Evers, in one of the first steps to ease the shutdown, said a handful of businesses could reopen, with safety precautions, including drive-in movie theaters.
The first pop-up drive-in was held May 29 in a parking lot at 701 W. St. Paul Ave., and included a concert by local musician Joe Wray and a showing of the 1985 favorite “The Goonies.” More than 100 people, in 45 cars, took in the show.
Because the impetus for the project was the new reality of the need for social distancing while craving being together, they lined up “peacemakers” — people who help on site, answering questions, guiding patrons to bathrooms (no lines allowed).
The idea is to create “an environment where they can feel comfortable … and a little bit normal,” Lara said. And there’s definitely need for that. “It’s something we’ve talked about a lot … how do you bring people together right now?” said Ben Hoekstra, communications manager for Menomonee Valley Partners, which worked with Lara and Koller on the event on St. Paul Avenue in May. “I think it’s a distinctly Milwaukee thing, being creative in (finding) ways to bring people together.
“I think you’re going to see a lot more of these creative solutions.”
Koller, who grew up in Milwaukee’s Midtown neighborhood, said they are in talks with the East Side, Downer and Near West Side business improvement districts, and for a Parking Lot Theatre in Midtown. Partnering with BIDs, businesses, performers and sponsors, she said, is essential for pulling off these efforts.
The first drive-in’s success — it sold out quickly — proved the concept can work, Lara and Koller said. Hopefully, Lara added, a second event will do more.
“We need this one to solidify the concept,” he said.