Issue date: 7/31/03 Section: Culture

Media Credit: Colin Ley The Sunshine Theatre located in downtown Albuquerque at Central Ave and 2nd St.

by Jessica Del Curto

Daily Lobo

For years the Sunshine Theatre has been a reliable venue that has attracted musicians big and small from all over the country.

Since 1984, the medium-sized theater has provided a stage for Grammy award-winning artists such as Pancho Sanchez, struggling local bands and DJs, and has welcomed all ages through its doors.

But since the recent death of 16-year-old Marissa Mathy-Zvaifler of Santa Fe, the music venue has been scrutinized by the public and has left some wondering about its future.

Mathy-Zvaifler was attending an Atmosphere concert at the Sunshine Theatre with friends on July 16 when she got separated from the group and never returned home. Later, her body was found in a storage closet in the theater, having been strangled to death. Dominic Akers, a registered sex offender, was a janitor at the theater and has been arrested in connection with the murder.

Vincent Johnson, general manager and spokesman for the Sunshine Theatre, said that because of this incident, he now feels compelled to do thorough background checks on every employee, even those hired to clean toilets.

"We have a janitor who has slipped through the cracks, and I think it's raised everyone's level of awareness," Johnson said.

Johnson said that the theater has always exceeded the level of security standards, and that night was no exception. There were about 890 patrons at the event, with 16 security officers on duty.

"This was an isolated event," he said. "As horrific as it was, Albuquerque relies on Sunshine being open, and it's important we continue to do what we're doing."

Many agree that the Sunshine Theatre, located at 120 Central Ave. SW, is important to the culture of Albuquerque. The Sunshine Building, which first opened in 1924 as a 920-seat movie theater, was one of the city's tallest buildings. It continued to show films until the 1980s.

In 1984, the building was turned into the Zone Nightclub, and was remodeled to allow live music performances. Then in 1998, Moonlight Enterprises took over and the Sunshine Theatre became a full-fledged music venue, which now books about 12 shows a month.

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