SPOT Venue is a space for arts and movement
While the city core has been expanding its cultural offerings, Chattanooga east of the Brainerd Road tunnel is getting a little less love.
However, private business owners are stepping into a space that can often seem like drive-through territory between East County and downtown. One such entrepreneur is Sarah Yvonne Chappell, proprietress of SPOT Venue at 3214 Brainerd Road.
A former soloist with Alabama Ballet, Chappell has roots in the community; for a while she and her children crowded into a tiny apartment right over the building next door. But now she’s thriving as an event planner, dancer, choreographer, and business owner. And she’s creating a space where magic can happen. SPOT Venue is part event space, part movement arts studio. The combination works well, with the event space funding Chappell’s creative work.
“I have to go home and crunch the numbers,” she says breathlessly when we meet. She’s rosy-faced from the cold air, wearing a snug cap, garnet-colored turtleneck, and black Adidas. She looks like a woman on the go, radiating energy. I soon find out that spirit of can-do! infuses all her projects, especially SPOT.
“SPOT began as a way to fill a need,” Chappell says. “[Chattanooga had] big-time spaces like the Tivoli, UTC, and Barking Legs... Then there were children’s [dance] schools. But there was nothing in between. A place where you can mess up and learn. A place that graciously allowed for messiness and mistakes.”
When the space on Brainerd Road became available, Chappell took advantage. And what a space it is. It’s nothing more than a big, empty, softly echoing storefront, but it’s magical.
You could imagine the acrobats of “The Night Circus” rehearsing here. There’s an old-style embossed ceiling, so high it’s half-lost in shadow, and fans with blades like birch wood propellers emerging from the dim. The marley-over-wood dance floor is large and decently springy.
Two enormous mirrors, mounted on carved wooden frames, can be rolled to make any side “front” or cleared out of the way for performances. There’s a stage where a band can set up. Even with a big performance space cleared out, there’s plenty of room around for seating and exhibits. If you want to host a shabby-chic wedding, a trendy corporate event, or an album-drop party, SPOT Venue is definitely your spot.
At SPOT, Chappell wanted to initiate her own program of dance teaching and performance. That dream, too, is slowly coming to fruition. SPOT Venue has a home company—the nascent Ballet Esprit—and also offers a curated selection of dance and athletic classes from artists across the community.
In addition to Ballet Esprit’s children’s and adult programs, SPOT is home to Nooga Kids Kung Fu with Master Ziwei Guo and Unfurl Community Yoga. SPOT hosts programs such as TUNE Personal Training; Zy’Mori, a hip hop nonprofit; FIT4MOM; and Doors Open Jazz, another community non-profit.
SPOT Venue has twice hosted “Celebrations”, collaborative live performances, and will host this year’s “The Road: Exploring Healing & Recovery Through the Arts”.
The Business Experience
“[Starting a business] was very intimidating, especially for someone who’s been a stay-at-home mom for 15 years,” says Chappell, who recently obtained a bachelor’s degree in business. “With SPOT, I’ve had to grow in ways I didn’t know existed. I’m confronted with realities that affect the community.”
For instance, she’s had to balance staying viable as a for-profit—SPOT supports her and her family—while doing business with local community members and nascent artists, many of whom may be struggling financially.
“As supportive as I want to be, I have to support SPOT first,” she concluded.
With other Olde Town business owners, Chappell is looking to make life easier for everyone in the neighborhood, addressing issues such as the speeding on Brainerd Road, which endangers customers and local pedestrians. She’s also trying to create a physically healthy space for people—SPOT is green|spaces certified, and offers an eco-friendly environment with fresh water to drink and clean air to breathe.
New business owners almost inevitably face challenges starting out, and Chappell is no exception. But she’s taken every hurdle as an opportunity to learn, and the result is a synergistic space for collaboration, creativity, and sharing.
To learn more, visit spotvenue.co
Photo by Amy Kenyon