Renovation of the Alhambra and Other Stories

In June I was approached by Bob Boone, publisher of the Reader, a weekly alternative to the Duluth News Tribune, to do a story about the Alhambra, a forgotten theater that he discovered when he purchased the Interior Tomato building adjacent to the West Theater. My working title for the piece was Bob Boone Shares His Vision for the Alhambra. 

It's actually quite a story. The piece was finally published in August and it began like this:

The Vision for the Alhambra

One of the most exciting West Duluth developments in recent years has been the appearance of a number of classy new establishments. The Boreal House is two years old, Zenith Bookstore five this week. Jade Fountain, also new, has been a welcome addition to the neighborhood where Wussow’s Concert Cafe has served as an anchor for the past two decades.

Across the street the historic West Theater has also contributed to the magic of this neighborhood’s re-emergence. And when Reader publisher Bob Boone completes his current reconstruction project there will be yet another lost historic theater next to the West: The Alhambra.

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Re-creating the original sculpted design features.

It's hard to say what I found most interesting about this story. In part it's a story about serendipity. In part, it's a story about Duluth's lost history. What especially interested me was its tie to the Alhambra in Spain. Even if only in name only, there's something exotic about this famous landmark in Andalusia, the region where Cervantes' Don Quixote dreamed his own impossible dreams.

I attempted to suggest a parallel between Bob Boone and the famous knight of old. I didn't want to push it too far, lest someone believe Mr. Boone was similarly "tilting at windmills." Nevertheless, there's something to be said for dreamers. 

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For what it's worth, the Reader archives many of the stories written by its writers. If interested you can walk back in time and read some of my previous contributions to this local rag. For a little over three years I covered "the arts beat" and became quite immersed in the local art scene.   You can read find some of the interviews I did along with a few other stories here.

Meantime, if you are a writer, write on.

Photo top right courtesy Kathryn A Martin Library, Archives & Special Collections