Seattle’s Cultural Desert: A Plea for a Theater

Demosthenes at one time severely raided the people of Athens for constructing private residences more costly and expensive than the public buildings. If this venerable old sage of classic fame was vexed with the people of that city, renowned for its great public structure, on this account, what would he think of us? Undoubtedly he would be distracted with the condition of things here, if he could drop in upon us, and publicly avow belief in retrogression. We are more practical than the people of olden time and prefer rather to invest our means in comfortable dwelling houses than lavishing them on costly public structures which can serve no other purpose than that of ornaments. This is well. But there are extremes on either side and one is quite as bad as the other. We appear to have gone to the extreme of discarding public structures in toto. There is perhaps not a city of its size on the continent that has been so negligent and tardy in all public enterprise of this kind as Seattle. We may be justly proud of the individual enterprise and good taste of our citizens, as evinced by the many beautiful residences that ornament our city, while we sincerely regret the lack of public enterprise, as far as buildings are concerned. There is not, comparatively speaking, a suitable place in this city for a public entertainment, and specially do we realize and regret this fact when we are visited by a first-class dramatic or opera troupe such as have appeared here of late. We have an old hall, it is true, which we inaptly style a theater and which is quite as far behind the times as Rip Van Winkle was when he awoke from his twenty year's sleep. Therefore we may say that Seattle's greatest want at the present time is a theater, or a large public hall which could be used as such. Such a building could be easily secured by the co-operative effort of a few of our enterprising citizens. For instance, a joint stock company might be formed, a suitable piece of ground acquired, and the building erected. It would be a credit to our city, and would prove a profitable investment for the parties concerned.