By JESSE ROSS

Having recently celebrated its milestone 30th anniversary, Fremont's Empty Space Theatre must face the question, "What about the next 30 years?"

Artistic director Eddie Levi Lee acknowledges that making sure the Empty Space will still be around to celebrate its 60th anniversary is daunting challenge, as witnessed by the recent closures of the Bathhouse Theatre in Green Lake and the University District's Group Theatre - both of which were well-established mid-sized theater companies, much like the Empty Space.

Lee notes: "The first 30 years are the easiest!"

In order to continue to bring quality, ground-breaking theater to the people of Seattle, Lee and the Empty Space will have to recharge their continual quest for donations and an audience as well as face the new challenges of migrating actors and competition with the Internet.

For a mid-sized theater such as the Empty Space, the hurdle that must be cleared before each and every new idea can take shape is that of funding. Approximately 50 percent of the Empty Space's operating budget comes from corporate and private donations, while the other half is brought in through performance revenues.

What this means is that even if the theater is consistently performing to packed houses, the future well being of the company will remain in the hands of those who choose to donate to the theater. Therefore, finding new and creative ways to attract donors will be vital in the Empty Space's quest to see the year 2030.

Being dependent on the generosity of others and not always receiving as much as had been hoped for has placed some restrictions on the types of projects that the Empty Space can produce.

"You have to live within the budget," says Lee, who over his six-year tenure as the Empty Space's artistic director has had to pass on some interesting projects simply because the budget to produce them wasn't available.

But, as Lee puts it, "Limits aren't always a bad thing. They just make you more creative."

This is certainly evident in the fresh and innovative productions that the Empty Space has become known for over the past 30 years.

It is this creativity and desire to push the theatrical envelope that attracted many to the Empty Space when it opened in 1970. While the theater company has enjoyed a loyal fan base for years, the Empty Space must entice new, younger fans if it is going to survive.

The challenge, says Lee, is to do this without changing the focus and ideals of the theater. "You don't just want to cater to a young audience," he says. Instead, he believes the Empty Space must "Do the work and hope it attracts a diverse crowd."

Rather than pander to a younger audience, the Empty Space has instead focused on community outreach programs that seek to share the joys of theater with children and disadvantaged youth. Both a late-night production to keep youth constructively occupied at night, and in-school performances of works by Shakespeare and "The Complete History of the United States: Abridged Version" have been well-received, both by the participants as well as by audiences.

Unfortunately for the Empty Space and the children who benefit from these programs, the funding needed to continue these projects has been less than desired and the theater company was forced to discontinue its late-night program.

While dealing with obstacles such as lean budgets and the need to attract diverse audiences is nothing new for the Empty Space, two new challenges have recently caught Lee's attention: First is a growing exodus of Seattle actors to bigger markets, such as Los Angeles, New York and Chicago, and second is a new rival in the competition to attract audiences - the Internet and online entertainment.

When Lee first moved to Seattle nine years ago, he found the situation here to be quite different. This city, he recalls, was considered by many to be on the verge of becoming a theatrical Mecca, with an influx of talented actors streaming here from other parts of the country to stake their claim in the theatrical gold rush that was unfolding. Even for those who could not find steady work at larger playhouses, opportunities still abounded for them among the region's many fringe theater groups.

While there was growing interest in Seattle's theaters, much of it was brought on by this injection of talent into the area as part of a self-fulfilling prophesy. Ultimately, the great expectations for the city's theater scene never fully materialized. Seattle has not become the next L.A. or New York, and perhaps never will be.

"The Big Thing is not going to happen here," said Lee. He notes that many of the talented actors who flocked here a few years ago to hone their skills have since moved on to bigger markets in order to make a living.

To the Empty Space, a theater that can't afford to recruit out-of-area actors, this exodus of talent limits the projects the theater company can undertake.

As Lee puts it, "There are certain roles that I knew we can't do. We just can't cast them."

While Lee admits that this is not the town to be for actors seeking big bucks, he points out that Seattle does offer something that can't be found in many other cities. "Seattle allows theaters to take risks," he says.

And out of these risks have come the cutting-edge productions and artistic strides that have made the Empty Space and other Seattle mainstays like the ACT, Intiman and Seattle Rep so excitingly original.

Even as a "theater on the edge," the Empty Space may find itself too tame for those on the cutting edge of technology. New forms on online entertainment and virtual reality threaten to cut into the already scarce audience for live theater performances.

Lee says many believe these online programs "give people the same fix without leaving the home."

Not true, says Lee. What theater offers that TV and the Internet struggle to provide is spontaneity and live human interaction. The elements of risk and the energy that is present on stage is what has drawn Seattle fans to the Empty Space for the past 30 years.

Hopefully, the Empty Space will continue to do so for the next 30.

The Empty Space Theatre is located at 3509 Fremont Ave. N. For more information, call 547-7500.