She has appeared as a soloist in concert with Arizona Opera, Tucson. “Its size gives us the flexibility to be creative with the programming. The Orlando Sentinel also hailed her for her winningly devilish Carmen who brought. “It will be cool for artists to play in a place like this, that lives and breathes Tucson history,” Stratford said. He also hopes to hold film screenings there as part of his annual Film Fest Tucson. Stratford said Teatro Carmen will book its own shows, as well as rent out the space for concerts and community events. “I’d like to see the restaurant open all the time, not just before and after shows,” Stratford said. The adjoining building next door will be converted into a bar and restaurant with a patio area on the corner of South Meyer Avenue and West Simpson Street. The project will require a near-complete restoration of the building, including the construction of a new stage and fly loft. Stratford said a lot of work needs to be done to the 8,700 square feet of space to get the venue back on its feet. Meyer Ave., in Tucson, ahead of a sale to clear out items the Rollings family has collected over the years before the building is sold. They had been using Teatro Carmen for storage of architectural salvage, much of which they sold in an estate sale in May.Īntique tables, fireplaces, lights and furniture are photographed inside the Teatro Carmen, 380 S. Led by patriarch Kelley Rollings, the Rollings family started purchasing and preserving properties in Barrio Viejo in 1971 as a way to save them from urban renewal. Stratford Art Works, Inc., has purchased the 106-year-old Teatro Carmen in downtown Tucson with plans to resurrect it as an active community arts and cultural space. The Rollings family, whose businesses, Arizona Territorial Lands LLC and Bacon Industries Inc., own properties throughout Barrio Viejo, started talking with Stratford more than a year ago about Teatro Carmen, spokesman Donald Rollings said. “It has this incredible history of Hispanic heritage, African American heritage,” Stratford said. 601, a black social club, from 1937 to 1986, according to press materials. It was also home to the Pilgrim Rest Elks Lodge No. The venue was sold in 1926 and since that time, has been many things, including an auto garage, a space for Borderlands Theater and most recently a workshop and storage warehouse. Stratford Art Works Inc., has purchased Teatro Carmen in downtown Tucson, with plans to turn in back into a performing arts space.