The Dating Game premiered on ABC 60 years ago. This month in Springfield, co-producers Lindsey Goodhart and Ally Lollis and their team premiered their own dating show. Closet Space.
“Closet Space,” explained Goodhart, “is a blind dating show that utilizes a live studio audience, set up as a community event space for Sapphic and other queer identities to kind of build connection.”
Goodhart graduated from Missouri State with a degree in film. She says inspiration came from shows like Love Connection and wanting to produce something with a queer big city vibe in the Midwest. She says the idea grew out of frustration with dating apps and a lack of spaces and events for women to meet other women and for any queer people to meet in person. All that, and nostalgia for a time when tv felt like an event itself.
“Whenever we were growing up,” Goodhart said, “you had to, like, tune in to watch your shows at the same time and like, you would go to school the next day, and everybody would be able to talk about stuff. And it was really like what you would watch on TV would be like this community factor.”
Goodhart and Lollis want to build on the feeling of community that can develop through media. They view the project as much as community outreach as a tv show, with a social event baked into the live event and a chance for the audience to meet and mingle. They’ve had a strong response.
Their first TikTok post now has almost a million views. Their first episode taping in Springfield sold out in 48 hours and they are planning events with partners in St. Louis and Kansas City, as well as a second event in Springfield. Lollis said pairing their production with community outreach and connecting with their audience feels like making queer history.
“It really does feel magical,” Lollis said, “like when Lindsay presented the idea, it felt like a no brainer because it's just never been done before. And it's really needed here in this town, in the Midwest in general.”
The first episode of Closet Space should be available on the production’s Patreon in early January. The next taping scheduled for Springfield is January 3. More information at closetspacetv.com.