We've had homes on both the south and north ends over the years; the Amp has been the central heartbeat & the source of myriad memories. When I was a kid, I waited backstage for Jose Feliciano after a show & asked him to sign my arm (he graciously did - I didn't wash it for days, much to my mom's chagrin). In later years, we stood in line for a Johnny Mathis concert so that my big sister (the only person I know who has worn out multiple Johnny Mathis CDs and has all of them) could sit in the front row to see him up close (she was over the moon and got to meet him backstage). These days, due to the skyboxing of the Amp, you can't even get first come-first served for a front row seat; that too has been restricted, reducing the number of seats that could be filled before the beginning of the performance as people have to stand and wait until the first break in the music for to cordoned off sections to be opened. (Hmm-there's where maybe 400 spots could be freed up...) $30 million for another 400 seats? Something doesn't add up here...And how sad that we will have an orchestra pit when the members themselves are against it. I personally enjoy sitting just behind them for a personal experience.
D
D.A. Cogswell
11 years ago
Too
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Richard G. Berger
11 years ago
I first went to the Chautauqua Institution in 1950 with my parents. I was 3 at the time. We stayed in Bemus Point in an nice house on Elm Street, and enjoyed the lake and the Institution. Those early impressions established an esthetic sensibiltiy, and esthetic preference, within me, that remains to this day. The Victorian residential architecture, with prominent front porches, is an expression of the shared communal values, and a willingness to be open to public discussion.
M
Mary J Taylor
11 years ago
there are many ways to spend the money raisedd to ensure the structural stability of the amp as well as improving the amenities while retaining the amp as we know it. Yes, preserve the amp!
J
joseph fischer
11 years ago
I have visited chaut many times and firmly belid v
B
Barbara Scott
11 years ago
Longtime adjacent property owner
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Richard Brugger
11 years ago
Thanks to Attorney Berg, for taking on this task. I had concerns about the project when I clecked the exhibit in Library at end of Bestor Plaza, two summers ago. I became aware of the petition through an article in the Erie Times News. I have communicated with Pat Cuneo, who wrote the newspaper editorial.
P
Peggy Lynn Ferber
11 years ago
It is part of a living institution and should be preserved. Fix it if it needs it - but do NOT tear it down - Please
D
Dennis Davenport
11 years ago
It is unlikely that new construction could replicate the existing acoustics, which serve the program and especially the organ so well.
W
Ward Pautler
11 years ago
Spend the some money on swimming areas.
C
Committee to Save the Historic Chautauqua Amphitheater
· petition starter
11 years ago
Here's some comments just this week, made in letters to the editor and major opinion columns alike in the Buffalo News and the Erie Times-News. You can follow all of the press coverage at www.savetheamp.org,
Pat Cuneo: Threatened amphitheater tests Chautauqua's mission (Erie Times News, December 22, 2014)
What's amazing to me is that if there's one place in the world that should understand authentic vs. replica, tradition vs. modernism, real vs. fake, it's Chautauqua Institution. Worse, its leaders were sneaky about their plans for destruction.
The reason this issue became so heated so quickly is that the institution kept calling it a restoration, for months of meetings, before finally letting it be known they needed to get rid of the whole thing, to make something that would last another hundred years; that would increase and improve seating from 4,063 to 4,500; that would incorporate a much-needed orchestra pit; that would be more appealing to younger people. Blah, blah, blah.
The truth is, the people who run this place apparently lost sight of or never fully understood their greatest asset of all: authenticity.....
Sitting in a replica or in a modern hall that could be found in Chicago or Cleveland or Philadelphia or San Antonio is not the same.
Authenticity matters.
Many of the residents of and visitors to Chautauqua Institution may be older in age. They may have lost their gate tickets. But they're young in mind and spirit because they long ago embraced the magic of Chautauqua, their love of music, philosophy, religion and intellectual curiosity forever unfulfilled.
May they have their center of learning preserved, not destroyed.
Letter: Amp is one of a kind, ought to be preserved (Buffalo News, December 24, 2014)
Chautauqua Institution President Thomas Becker’s letter in response to Donn Esmonde’s column is typical of bureaucrats who are more concerned with their own convenience than any sort of responsibility to histor
C
candy larson
11 years ago
redo noe tear down
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Nancy Latimer
11 years ago
Preserve and restore. It can be done. It just may not be quite as easy.
R
Roger Latimer
11 years ago
Preservation is key.
R
Rebecca Kightlinger
11 years ago
Don't wipe out your best asset when it can be beautifully, authentically restored.
L
Logan Stollenwerck
11 years ago
Save the Amp!
C
Cheryl Stollenwerck
11 years ago
Please don't destroy this beautiful, historical Amp!!
M
Mariana Mathewson
11 years ago
What a wonderful cause, please save the beloved amp! Chautauqua's identity would be completely changed!
V
Virginia Nordstrom
11 years ago
Featured
Chautauqua Institution has been duplicitous to Chautauquans and to the federal government, from whom it accepted funds for restoration. The amphitheater is a valuable part of our national heritage and should be treated with respect and dignity.
We've had homes on both the south and north ends over the years; the Amp has been the central heartbeat & the source of myriad memories. When I was a kid, I waited backstage for Jose Feliciano after a show & asked him to sign my arm (he graciously did - I didn't wash it for days, much to my mom's chagrin). In later years, we stood in line for a Johnny Mathis concert so that my big sister (the only person I know who has worn out multiple Johnny Mathis CDs and has all of them) could sit in the front row to see him up close (she was over the moon and got to meet him backstage). These days, due to the skyboxing of the Amp, you can't even get first come-first served for a front row seat; that too has been restricted, reducing the number of seats that could be filled before the beginning of the performance as people have to stand and wait until the first break in the music for to cordoned off sections to be opened. (Hmm-there's where maybe 400 spots could be freed up...) $30 million for another 400 seats? Something doesn't add up here...And how sad that we will have an orchestra pit when the members themselves are against it. I personally enjoy sitting just behind them for a personal experience.
Too
I first went to the Chautauqua Institution in 1950 with my parents. I was 3 at the time. We stayed in Bemus Point in an nice house on Elm Street, and enjoyed the lake and the Institution. Those early impressions established an esthetic sensibiltiy, and esthetic preference, within me, that remains to this day. The Victorian residential architecture, with prominent front porches, is an expression of the shared communal values, and a willingness to be open to public discussion.
there are many ways to spend the money raisedd to ensure the structural stability of the amp as well as improving the amenities while retaining the amp as we know it. Yes, preserve the amp!
I have visited chaut many times and firmly belid v
Longtime adjacent property owner
Thanks to Attorney Berg, for taking on this task. I had concerns about the project when I clecked the exhibit in Library at end of Bestor Plaza, two summers ago. I became aware of the petition through an article in the Erie Times News. I have communicated with Pat Cuneo, who wrote the newspaper editorial.
It is part of a living institution and should be preserved. Fix it if it needs it - but do NOT tear it down - Please
It is unlikely that new construction could replicate the existing acoustics, which serve the program and especially the organ so well.
Spend the some money on swimming areas.
Here's some comments just this week, made in letters to the editor and major opinion columns alike in the Buffalo News and the Erie Times-News. You can follow all of the press coverage at www.savetheamp.org, Pat Cuneo: Threatened amphitheater tests Chautauqua's mission (Erie Times News, December 22, 2014) What's amazing to me is that if there's one place in the world that should understand authentic vs. replica, tradition vs. modernism, real vs. fake, it's Chautauqua Institution. Worse, its leaders were sneaky about their plans for destruction. The reason this issue became so heated so quickly is that the institution kept calling it a restoration, for months of meetings, before finally letting it be known they needed to get rid of the whole thing, to make something that would last another hundred years; that would increase and improve seating from 4,063 to 4,500; that would incorporate a much-needed orchestra pit; that would be more appealing to younger people. Blah, blah, blah. The truth is, the people who run this place apparently lost sight of or never fully understood their greatest asset of all: authenticity..... Sitting in a replica or in a modern hall that could be found in Chicago or Cleveland or Philadelphia or San Antonio is not the same. Authenticity matters. Many of the residents of and visitors to Chautauqua Institution may be older in age. They may have lost their gate tickets. But they're young in mind and spirit because they long ago embraced the magic of Chautauqua, their love of music, philosophy, religion and intellectual curiosity forever unfulfilled. May they have their center of learning preserved, not destroyed. Letter: Amp is one of a kind, ought to be preserved (Buffalo News, December 24, 2014) Chautauqua Institution President Thomas Becker’s letter in response to Donn Esmonde’s column is typical of bureaucrats who are more concerned with their own convenience than any sort of responsibility to histor
redo noe tear down
Preserve and restore. It can be done. It just may not be quite as easy.
Preservation is key.
Don't wipe out your best asset when it can be beautifully, authentically restored.
Save the Amp!
Please don't destroy this beautiful, historical Amp!!
What a wonderful cause, please save the beloved amp! Chautauqua's identity would be completely changed!
Chautauqua Institution has been duplicitous to Chautauquans and to the federal government, from whom it accepted funds for restoration. The amphitheater is a valuable part of our national heritage and should be treated with respect and dignity.
Restoration...not replication please