Off-Off-Broadway's Wild Project Launches Fundraising Campaign to Purchase Building

The nonprofit producer and venue Wild Project has launched a capital fundraising campaign to purchase its building at 195 East 3rd Street in the East Village.

The eco-friendly venue has an 89-seat ADA-compliant theater and art gallery featuring solar panels, a rooftop garden, repurposed bamboo risers, LED lights, and biodegradable products. Purchasing the building would solidify Wild Project’s home permanently, but if the company does not come up with the funds to sign a contract by February, the space will go on the market and will likely be sold to the highest bidder, which would force Wild Project to join the many downtown performing arts spaces that have closed over the past twenty years.

Last year, Wild Project was awarded a $1,000,000 grant from former Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney and a $250,000 grant from the LoCAP fund via NYS Senator Brian Kavanaugh’s office, but an additional $1,000,000 through federal, state, local, community, and foundation resources is needed in order to take out a low-cost mortgage on the $5,000,000 building. The purchase of the building also includes the air rights, making the potential for a future performing arts center a strong possibility. Click here for more information about how to get involved.

Since 2007, Wild Project, which has the mission to serve BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ artists, has welcomed more than 55,000 patrons to its theater and supported more than 12,000 artists. They offer the venue for free or affordable rates to companies who employ 1,200-1,500 theater makers. Led by Ana Mari de Quesada, a Hispanic woman and member of the LGBTQIA+ community, Wild Project is one of six performance venues led by a woman of color.