Saturday, February 14 | 2 pm | PPL Donald J. Farish Auditorium - 3rd Floor
Join us at Providence Public Library for a preview screening of director Marc Levitt's documentary Triple Decker - A New England Love Story at 2 pm on Valentine's Day (Saturday, February 14). There will be a Q + A with the filmmaker after the screening. The tickets are free, and registration is not required but your signing up helps us plan for the event!
Register Here https://www.eventbrite.com/e/triple-decker-a-new-england-love-story-tickets-1977425063596
Questions? Write us at: tripledeckerfilm@gmail.com
The New England triple-decker's history is a microcosm of the American urban experience. It is a story of paradox and transformation, where a simple architectural form became a powerful symbol of immigration and community, fostering a sense of pride and shared identity. The building emerged from a specific set of circumstances—industrialization, immigration, and transit—as a brilliant and democratic solution to a housing crisis. Its live-in landlord model empowered generations of working-class families, providing a tangible path to homeownership and stability. The triple-decker remains a relevant and potent symbol. It reminds us that the most innovative and effective solutions often arise organically from a community's needs, rather than being imposed from the top down.
The documentary film Triple Decker: A New England Love Story, directed by Marc Levitt, is a key cultural artifact in the building's recent history. The film is not a traditional review but an act of cultural reclamation. The title itself consciously reframes the building from a 'menace' to an object of affection and pride, seeking to restore the narrative to the people who inhabited these homes, fostering a sense of respect and connection to local history.
Through the intimate stories of residents and perspective of scholars and historians, this film brings to life the past historic legacy and current revival of these structures supporting a movement and new policy initiatives that demonstrate the needs of affordable community building multi generational living. In addition, the film explores the history of our New England immigrant population from early mill workers to newly arrived refugees from countries around the world with compassion and insight demonstrating and addressing the legacy of this ongoing crisis, and offering a viable solution for our communities to prosper and thrive.