A venue in search of Latino artists

The Ricardo Montalban Nosotros Foundation acquired the Doolittle Theatre in Hollywood in 2000 and pledged to turn it into a professional center for Latino performing arts. Four years later, last May 8, the venue was officially renamed the Ricardo Montalban Theatre.

But where are the artists? A $125,000 series of play readings briefly occupied the theater in June, after its christening. The foundation’s sister organization, Nosotros, held a few workshops and readings there as well as a film festival. The Montalban is sometimes rented for gala events, such as an all-star reading of an unfinished Tony Kushner play Oct. 18.

Still, no full-blown production has occurred at the theater since a rental production of “Selena” lost more than $1 million in 2001.

Jerry Velasco, who heads the foundation, says a major production would cost about $1 million to mount because of union costs that “I wasn’t that familiar with.” Beyond production money, the foundation is also trying to raise $4.5 million for the renovation and maintenance of the theater. Velasco said donors appear more amenable to paying for the building than for the programs.

A consultant interviewed theater experts over the past year and is writing a plan for the theater’s future, Velasco says. It is scheduled to be released early next year.