Buddies in Bad Times Theatre

The Buddies in Bad Times Theatre occupies a brick building distinguished by a large, hand-painted mural of a giant, stylized eye on its side wall. It started in nineteen seventy-nine in a small basement, founded by Sky Gilbert and friends who wanted a stage for queer voices that mainstream venues ignored. When the city threatened to demolish this building in the nineties, the theater community occupied the space, fought the eviction in court, and eventually turned the structure into a permanent home for experimental performance.