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After working closely with Mayor Mike Spano's office and the Yonkers City Council, the company is now able to call the Grinton Will Public Library's theater its home.
The company, a non-profit established by Executive Producer Fatima Viegas, a Yonkers native, puts on a number of shows a year with a small cast of up to 20 professional actors.
Prior to the city's decision in January to allow the company to use the library, it bounced from venue to venue, including the Sandbox Theatre in Larchmont and the JCC in Scarsdale.
"For every show, I would go out and try to find theaters to bring our performances to," said Viegas. "Every show was in a different venue, and we ended up being all over the place."
After a few exhausting years, Viegas reached out to the mayor's office and told her story, and that she would love to find a home in a convenient area in Yonkers.
"The mayor and the City Council seem very interested in bringing the arts here," Viegas said. "I think its a brilliant idea because we really don't have anything quite like this in town."
According to Viegas, the city allowed the company to use the space for a price, but not nearly as steep as some of the other venues she had used before.
Now, the company uses the theater, which seats 250 people, for some of its rehearsals and all of its performances.
Viegas said the space is perfect for their productions and their budget, but lacking in some important equipment.
"Everything is really old and outdated," she said. "I rent a lot of equipment for our shows, and even then it is still less expensive."
According to Viegas, the city has also shown interest in revamping the theater's equipment some time in the near future.
The company's next show at the library will be a performance of "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee," from April 25 to 27. Buy tickets here.
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