‘Making Space: A Halifax Story’ documents fight for arts spaces

In his new documentary, Gareth Wasylynko used his background in city planning to document the past and present struggles of arts spaces across Halifax. 

Making Space: A Halifax Story, tells the history of Halifax’s development through the arts spaces that have come and gone from the city’s streets. The documentary is showing at Paul O’Regan Hall at Halifax Central Library at 6:30 p.m. on Nov. 13.

The idea for the documentary came to Wasylynko when he saw a presentation by former Bus Stop Theatre executive director Sebastien Labelle. In the presentation, Labelle described how the Bus Stop Theatre was able to purchase their own space — for Wasylynko, their experience shone a light on the overlap between city development and the creation of arts spaces.

 “Those two things have so much tension and conflict, but ultimately have to work together in order to get places,” he said. 

Making Space follows arts spaces throughout the city’s history that have either gone through hard times, or outright closed, like the Capitol Theatre, Pier One Theatre, The Khyber building, The Waiting Room Theatre and the Bus Stop Theatre.

Kathryn MacLellan, founder of the Waiting Room, is featured in the documentary. The Waiting Room — a theatre space created by converting an old Acadian Bus lines station — ran for five years before the owner decided to develop the space. She hopes developers can see her story and give artists an opportunity.

“I think what needs to happen is that empty spaces could be offered up,” she said. “Artists can move in and make anything and can create a space and make it workable.”

She worries for the future of arts and culture in Halifax. 

“When a city loses its cultural identity, then we all lose out because if we don’t have music and storytelling and expression and dance and something that brings us together … I don’t know what will happen to the culture.”

Wasylynko hopes audiences will be inspired to support arts spaces through community action. Making Space focuses on the arts, but he said similar ideas could be applied to other spaces such as a hockey rink or a community garden. 

“The issues are very much alive and ongoing, the documentary certainly doesn’t mean the fight or conversation is over,” he said.

“I think a lot of people would agree that a city without these spaces is almost not a city. These spaces are where the city’s personality comes out and can be shared and experienced together … We’re in a position now where the economics of development and our lack of prioritizing things like this has made it more and more challenging for the people doing it.”