As a teenager in Jr. high School, I used to hang out and work in the various shops, restaurants, live theatre and museums in downtown Roanoke. Market Square was my hallowed haunting ground. Jody used to say that Roanoke was like a movie set. I always have a rush of mixed feelings whenever I come back to these parts.
When I first met Chris Crooke, he was working at 309 First Street as a dishwasher. After work, he and I would sit in the parking lot just across the street and hang out and talk for hours. Now there is a new building in its spot.
Just up the street, you can see the building which housed the former Mill Mountain Theatre dormitories. On the second floor in the back was the first place I lived when I moved out of my house when I was 14 years old.
Farmers market stalls.
Mill Mountain Theatre scene shop entrance. The original scene shop was just in the back of Center in the Square, just off to stage right. My friend Reed and I credit Bob Sims for teaching us the base of everything we know about building and welding. I spent many a late nights working over there doing set construction.
I've always liked the Agnew Seed Building. I never understood how they were able to stay in business considering that you never really see anyone patronizing the place and aside from the $0.10 seed packages, not much in there costs more than $20 bucks. It was nice to see it still there though.
1 comment:
Now that's back in the day! I lived at the old dorms in 1999, now I work for MMT (PR Coordinator) and run the new housing. You should see the new place if you still remember the old housing. If you're in Roanoke and want to see the luxury the cast and crew lives in now, let me know.
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