March 12, 2020 | Community Spotlight: Thinking Outside the (Black) Box in Three Squares, Boston | By: Gerald Robbins, Executive Director, Three Squares Main Street |
Artist Melissa Nussbaum Freemen, Drew Hall from the MBTA transit authority, and Gerald Robbins of Three Squares Main Street discuss Store-d Stories and permitting needs. (Photo credit: Three Squares Main Street)
Three Squares Main Street in Boston, Mass., has done incredible work to highlight the stories of their local merchants and business owners. Guided by a commitment to telling the full story of their Main Street, this Main Street program has used theater to celebrate the community’s rich and diverse narratives. A truly innovative approach, this programming has received financial backing from the State and City, as well as investment from the local community.
Previous examples of this innovative programming include Teatro en el Parque, a collaboration with Escena Latina Teatro (ELT) to bring free outdoor theater in Spanish to the heart of the commercial district. In addition to this seven-year initiative, Three Squares has collaborated with other risk-taking artists in smaller scale projects such as pop-up installations and other community engagement techniques.
In today’s Community Spotlight, Gerald Robbins, Executive Director, details the latest initiative Three Squares is undertaking to tell the full story of their Main Street: Store’d Stories. This new series will transform downtown stores into performance halls for a night of improvised theater. True to the Three Squares Main Street commitment, the performances seek to connect the stories of their local merchants to the life of their community.
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This summer, Three Squares Main Street is excited to be collaborating with theater-artist Melissa Nussbaum Freeman on the production of her Store-d Stories production. Melissa’s multi-lingual Red Sage Stories troupe will be performing Store-d Stories in languages reflecting our community and the shop owners in whose businesses the performances will be held. Red Sage Stories’ performances have sought to educate, inspire understanding, share experiences, and be welcoming places to all.
Store-d Stories aims to uplift the work and community relationships of four local immigrant shop owners through an improvised storytelling technique called playback theatre: a form of improv in which audience members tell stories from their lives that are then acted out by performers on the spot. Converting a food store, clothing store, restaurant, pocket park, and unused grassy strip of land into temporary performance stages, Three Squares Main Street residents and shoppers will have several unique opportunities to enjoy this participatory theatre. 
Momtaz Choudhury, owner of Codman Square Market, with Melissa Nussbaum Freeman discussing Store-d Stories project. (Photo credit: Three Squares Main Street)
As a formal community partner with Melissa Nussbaum Freeman, Three Squares Main Street has been planning this project since the spring of 2019. We will help with coordination and logistics with the local business owners and open spaces. For instance, as the spaces are set up for one-night theater venues, we plan to remove shelving and products from the businesses and store them in moving trucks. With support from Three Squares Main Street, Melissa has spent many hours researching business owners and their businesses to foster relationships and learn their stories so that the project is reflective of the commercial district.
Store-d Stories will be an amazing opportunity both to enjoy live improv theater in spaces that were not created to showcase performance art and to amplify the voices of immigrant shop owners through multi-lingual stories. This, we hope, will be an experience that is transformational for both business owners and our commercial district community.
We are looking forward to this and other collaborations with talented performance artists that add to the rich vibrancy in our commercial district. When thinking about telling your Main Street story look, connect with local arts funded organizations and artists to see how you can support each other to tell your story.
Bio
Gerald Robbins is the Executive Director of Three Squares Main Street. He has led the organization for more than 7 years. Gerald cares deeply about the Main Street Model, has worked hard to strengthen collaboration across Boston Main Streets district organizations, and has enjoyed learning and networking with colleagues across the county at Main Street Now conferences. Gerald will be leaving his position in March but will always be a Main Streeter.