Comments (1) Best Queens Sweet Spot - 2009

Chocolate Factory

Not a month goes by that we don't receive news of another New York theater shuttering. Stalwarts fall to high rent and creeping gentrification, classic stages become trendy boutiques, black boxes give way to yoga studios, and warehouses are transformed into condominiums. So we like to order a standing ovation when we hear of a new space: The Chocolate Factory in Long Island City, Queens, is an unusually toothsome theater. With its low rents, ample rehearsal space, and grants for resident and visiting artists, this theater has turned an unlikely neighborhood into a tasty place for drama and dance. In just six years, the Chocolate Factory has hosted artists such as Mac Wellman, Target Margin, and the National Theater of the United States of America. Artistic director Brian Rogers and executive director Sheila Lewandowski have transformed a former confectionery's 5,000 square feet of brick walls, cement floors, and rough edges into two versatile stages that lend themselves to experimental scripts and environmental productions. Delicious.

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