Documentary: The Story of 242 Main

For more than 30 years, 242 Main was a gathering spot for the youth of northwestern Vermont. Funded by the City of Burlington (begun during the Bernie Sanders Mayoral administration), 242 provided a haven for young misfits and fans of underground music. It was part music venue, part musician proving ground, and part teen drop-in center. With programming driven by teens, it became America’s longest-running all-ages punk rock venue and a sanctuary anchored in the hearts of thousands. No Stage Diving: The Story of 242 Main celebrates the history and legacy of this historic venue, and, in the words of those whose lives were touched by it, explores what the space meant to the community it served. View the trailer.

View the Trailer

The Story

242 Main was founded in the mid-1980’s as a project of Burlington, Vermont’s youth office under then-Mayor Bernie Sanders. It was an adult-supervised venue that offered programming conceived by Burlington’s teens, in an environment that they helped design and build. The teens wanted a place to host live music, so the empty basement office that became 242 Main also became an all-ages concert venue that operated for more than thirty years and seized a place in the nation's history as the longest-running all-ages punk rock venue in the country.

242 Main has had a profound impact on the lives of thousands of young Vermonters. It’s been a safe space for youth on the margins — and their voices — a place where they could be fearlessly creative and share with one another, and where their values and perspectives meant something. It’s a model for a city’s dedication to youth empowerment.

Deferred maintenance caused Burlington’s Memorial Auditorium — the building that houses 242 Main — to close until solutions for repair or redevelopment are determined through a future process. This leaves the future of 242 Main on an edge, balancing between decades of making positive memories and a future that’s uncertain. The documentary is timely; all eyes are on 242 Main.

The experiences and stories told by interview subjects from throughout 242 Main’s thirty years illuminate the challenges of youth; the sanctuary that an inclusive and compassionate subculture provides; and the forging of self-confidence that occurs among young people sharing their art and examining the framework of their society. Young people at 242 Main saved each other’s lives, both literally and figuratively, and gave themselves a place of their own in which to grow and set an example of empowerment to others.

What is the essence of a teen-led space? What does it stand for? Why is it important? What is the value of the contribution of youth to their culture and society? And finally, how can the City of Burlington continue 242’s legacy and mission of providing a youth-led space and all-ages venue?

Info

The No Stage Diving documentary is a volunteer-staffed non-commercial project. If you’d like to be a part of the effort, email info@bigheavyworld.com.

The production crew is seeking video footage taken inside 242 main at any time in its history; thanks for sharing if you have any! Email info@bigheavyworld.com.

Filmed, directed and edited by Bill Simmon. Produced byJames Lockridge. A project of Big Heavy World with support from The City of Burlington; Burlington Parks, Recreation & Waterfront Department; The Vermont Community Foundation; New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission; Lake Champlain Basin Program; Northfield Savings Bank; Vermont Humanities Council and the people of 242 Main.

Filmmaker Bio

Bill Simmon is a filmmaker and writer in northern Vermont. Bill’s award-winning documentary films include Digital Pamphleteer (2007), Wood & Wire (2015), and High Water Mark: The Rise & Fall of The Pants (2016).

Read a profile of Bill by Thomas Shimmield.