The Dark Room Theater to go dark

In yet another recent blow for independent performance venues in the Mission, quirky and wonderful comedy and events space The Dark Room Theater is calling it quits.

Over the weekend, The Dark Room announced via its Facebook page that it will cease operations at the end of August. A follow-up comment posted this morning says that closing was a business decision and not because they lost the space. Home to standup comedy and Bad Movie Night screenings, The Dark Room’s announcement comes less than two weeks after another Mission Street venue, nearby gallery and all-ages music space Sub-Mission, shut down.

Here’s what Sean, The Dark Room’s managing director, had to say about the closure:

Dearest Friends Of The Dark Room Theater,
Some of you may have recently seen a post from friends of ours about some dire news for us. We had intended to hold off on any announcement until we were 100% positive about the future of our homely space at 2263 Mission Street, and had the chance to connect with any of our current partners and renters. This has not been the case as of yet, and to anyone that hasn’t been contacted yet, we apologize and are working as quickly as possible to make sure we know how to proceed.
Effective today, 7/25/15, The Dark Room Theater, LLC will no longer be taking any new rentals. We will work with any outstanding rentals on options, in some cases we may need to cancel those shows, that will be the exception for the immediate future. All of our full length shows are on indefinite hold, with no plans to produce in the future at this time.
Harold. Kumar. Whitecastle. is in talks about rebooting in a new space (show looks great!) and we’re terribly sad that we won’t be part of it. They deserve the best and if anyone wants to drop Peter Illes a line about options please do so.
The Tabernacle will be able to finish out their always booked dates (weekly until the end of August), unless they decide to move to a different location immediately. This is entirely up to them, and we wish them all the best in whatever paths they take. Their sales will be handled directly by them, and is no longer a Co-Production with our theater.
At the end of August we will officially cease to operate in any capacity as The Dark Room Theater. Jim Fourniadis will be posting later today to thank everyone for their years of service and help, love, and just generally allowing such a unique and amazing place to stay alive for all these years.
PLEASE. Direct any questions you have directly to Jim. While we never know what will happen in the future, this was the choice that we felt was correct. There will be a sale (TBA) of Dark Room items (merch, PAs, speakers, boards, lights, chairs, etc) and we ask if you are interested to please follow this page for the next official announcement.
It has been an honor getting to know everyone over the years, and I hope people are able to maintain dignity and composure as we move through this. It’s a shame to lose people we considered friends, but already even we’ve begun to see lines drawn, and I URGE EVERYONE to stop this behavior at once. This is not the time for petty bullshit.
This is the time that we would love to collectively share between all the friends over the years the good, bad, ugly, and growth that we’ve all experienced by being touched by this magical place.
If you don’t like what we stood for, or what we tried to do, we kindly ask that you please leave us alone. This is a highly emotional situation for at least the core group directly affected, and we would love to think that love, not hate, can triumph in the world.
We seek no revenge on whomever sent in the initial complaint, have no desire to speculate. We want to move forward as loving humans and just grow from this experience. Thank you all again, and I personally wish you all the best in everything that you do.
This theater saved my life. I owe it my upcoming marriage. There is a hole in my heart as we part ways yet hope in my eyes that something good will come from this.
Please be well,
Sean D Wigglesworth

The Dark Room is planning a garage sale and “Farewell Tour” with a staged reading of the Batman TV Show Parody on Aug. 22. Find out more information about it here.

[H/t Uptown Almanac]