Woodstock’s Bearsville Theater complex poised for rebirth as new owner takes on challenges
By John W. Barry, Poughkeepsie Journal
Lizzie Vann on the stage of the Bearsville Theatre on February 17, 2020. Vann purchased the theater complex in 2019 with the intention to renovate, upgrade the facility and make it thrive. (Photo: Patrick Oehler, Patrick Oehler/Poughkeepsie Journal)
The stage at the Bearsville Theater has featured members of some of rock and roll’s biggest bands, like Mick Taylor from the Rolling Stones, Bob Weir of the Grateful Dead and Mike Gordon of Phish.
Jon Anderson of Yes performed at the Woodstock venue with students from the Paul Green Rock Academy. The Pretenders, the B-52s and Natalie Merchant are among groups that held pre-tour rehearsals there.
On any given night, anyone from Donald Fagen of Steely Dan to Jimmy Fallon could be found at the intimate spot located in a town synonymous with music history.
But that was then.
What Lizzie Vann found the first time she walked into the Bearsville Theater, after purchasing the complex’s five buildings, basically sight unseen, for $2.5 million on Aug. 31, was what the venue had become.
Water was coming in through the roof of the theater and another building. Pipes were rotting. Other pipes had burst. Floorboards were swollen. Mold was a frequent sight. She couldn’t even know, yet, about the problems she would have with the foundations of the buildings.
The theater was less than two months removed from its last concert. But even then, its condition was “embarrassing” and “in disrepair,” according to Gary Chetkof, owner of Radio Woodstock, which staged the Conor Oberst performance in July. It was one of only a handful of shows to be held at the theater during the year, as previous owners dealt with financial issues that prompted liens and led to neglect.
“Let the buyer beware,” Vann, 61, said. But, she added, “I’m OK with this, knew the risk. It’s bad but not irretrievable.”
Vann, a native of England who built a multimillion dollar enterprise long before falling in love with Woodstock and moving to the town in 2014, has remained undeterred.
Renovations underway inside the Bearsville Theatre on February 17, 2020. (Photo: Patrick Oehler, Patrick Oehler/Poughkeepsie Journal)
And, having invested millions into the restoration of the complex, Vann believes residents will soon see what she sees in the property, which was built by the late Woodstock music impresario Albert Grossman, who managed Bob Dylan and Janis Joplin.
How Bearsville Theater renovations added up to $2.5M
She’s being helped by the complex’s original designer. The makeover is scheduled to debut this month along with a new name — the Bearsville Center.
“Don’t you think it deserves it? Don’t you think this place deserves it?” she said. “It’s a very special place — the community, this part of the Catskills, the Bearsville Center.
“It’s an amazing place and there is so much today that is very superficial and transient, and here we’ve got roots, we’ve got tree roots, we’ve got building roots, we’ve got history.”
What the Bearsville Theater was, what the Bearsville Center will be
Though the roughly 400-capacity theater that opened in 1989 was the complex’s namesake, the property also includes two restaurants, the Bear Café and Little Bear Chinese; the 140-year-old Peterson House, home to the Commune Saloon; and the Utopia building, home to Radio Woodstock and the Utopia Soundstage, which was built specifically for former Woodstock resident and rock musician Todd Rundgren.
When Vann purchased the site, the theater, Bear Café and Peterson House were closed.
Many, such as Fishkill’s Mike Colucci, recall epic performances at the theater, and considered it an anchor of the local entertainment community. Others have argued the theater, located just two miles from downtown Woodstock, never quite reached its potential or established itself as a destination for the top acts.
Colucci, 50, saw a range of acts at the Bearsville Theater, from the Punch Brothers, with Chris Thile of Nickel Creek and public radio’s “Live from Here” program; to an assortment of cover bands.
He thinks of the Bearsville Theater “as a party barn, up in the Catskill woods; going into a barn and listening to a show with friends and locals. It’s intimate. You’re close to the stage.”
As for the renovations, he said, “I just hope it stays quaint and personal.”
Vann has spent $2 million on overhauling the site. Foundations of four of the buildings were rebuilt. Walls, floors and roofs of buildings were replaced. Walk-in refrigerators and freezers were deconstructed due to mold. Trenches are being dug to redirect runoff and prevent future damage.
She expects to spend another $500,000 “just getting the property into shape.”
Regarding what visitors should expect from the theater, “The sleek, clean look and sound of the bar area survives,” Vann wrote on www.bearsvillecenter.com. She’s installed a permanent stage for smaller events, with the donation of a century-old Steinway grand piano providing a firm fixture.
Theater manager Robert Frazza, who has a long history with the venue and is overseeing the space for Vann, has replaced the entire sound and lighting system.
Also, there are new downstairs bathrooms; and in the theater auditorium, frayed, faded stage curtains have been removed.
Outside of the theater building, the Commune Saloon’s patio and fire pit will host live acoustic music beginning on Easter weekend. And Vann is in discussions with potential operators for the Bear Café and entire Peterson House, as she works to open both later this year.
Vann’s plans also call for extending the property’s lawn into the parking lot to create more green space. And she wants to utilize the Utopia Soundstage — a second performance space — by inviting bands to rehearse during the week, offer musical instruction to children at the end of that week, and then give a concert in the theater on that Friday night.
For now, she is in familiar territory, racing against a tight deadline. Last year, she had just eight days, after deciding to purchase the site, to close the deal before a bank auction was held.
The Bearsville Theater was scheduled to be one of the venues hosting the Woodstock Bookfest at the end of March, but that gathering has been canceled because, “Public gatherings are just not smart right now,” according to www.woodstockbookfest.com
Next up are concerts, beginning with the Masters of The Telecaster show on April 17.
“This is a challenge,” said Vann, who was born in England. “But it’s going to be OK.”
The Bearsville Theatre complex on February 17, 2020. (Photo: Patrick Oehler, Patrick Oehler/Poughkeepsie Journal)
Buying the Bearsville
Vann in 1992 launched the Organix food company, built it into a $50 million enterprise and sold the endeavor in 2008.
She took the proceeds and developed the Anna Maria Historic Green Village in Florida. The site features restored, relocated and new buildings — commercial and residential — that comprised Florida’s first zero net energy retail park.
Vann and her partner, musician and photographer David McGough, whose photographs have graced the cover of the New York Post, vacationed in Woodstock 10 years ago and loved it so much they bought a home several years later in the hamlet of Willow. Now the pair are working together on the renovation.
“I love Woodstock because it reminds me of the Lake District in the U.K. — one of our most beautiful areas — lakes, mountains, forests, thoughtful artistic people,” Vann said.
By last summer, Vann was retired and the Bearsville Theater c