F ROM PR E V IOUS PAGE The renovations, completed by archi-
The Newhart
Family Theatre occupies the
space that was
formerly the Mun- delein College Gymnasium.
The Newhart Family Theatre T
he Newhart Family Theatre will offer new and excit- ing opportunities to students involved in theatre at Loyola. The stage is a thrust stage, which means that
the audience surrounds the performers on three sides as op- posed to a classic proscenium—like Mullady—the previous theatre, in which the audience is situated on one side of the performers, looking into a picture. “Physically, the new theatre space offers a totally differ- ent experience for the audience and performer,” says April Browning, managing director of fine and performing arts. “The thrust space creates an interaction between perform- ers and the audience that is more intimate and dynamic. This change also means different opportunities for scenic, cos- tume, and lighting design and choices of literature. So many of the plays that are written today require a more engaged relationship with the audience, so the experience of working in this theatre is going to be a lot more relevant to what students are going to be doing after they graduate.” In addition to the new stage, the scenic and costume
shops got major upgrades with enough space to use as both teaching labs and workshop spaces.
Upgraded scenic and costume
shops comple- ment the new theatre.
HIGHLIGHTS
• 215 fixed seats, thrust configuration with pro- scenium arch.
• State-of-the-art sound, lighting, video, and com- munication system and custom suspension grid.
• Backstage includes a green room and dressing and changing rooms for up to 30 performers, as well as a make-up room.
• The lower level features a new scenic shop, includ- ing a prop shop and painting and welding ar- eas, as well as a costume shop with dye and fitting rooms and storages.
• Also included in the newly renovated spaces are a flexible seating black box theatre called The Underground, a small recital hall on the second floor, a sheet music library, and performance classrooms, studios, and practice rooms for music, theatre, and dance.
16 LOYOLA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO
tects from Baranski Hammer Moretta & Sheehy, were completed from top to bot- tom. The building’s elevator shaft didn’t originally extend to the top four floors, which served as living quarters for the BVMs. Thus, a major project was to build an elevator that went all the way from the basement to the 14th floor—no small feat. The biggest renovation challenge came
with the construction of the Newhart Fam- ily Theatre (see sidebar). In order to clear the space needed for the stage opening, three structural columns had to be cut out. A enormous steel transfer beam now holds up the weight of floors 4–7 that the columns previously supported—a design that won the firm Klein and Hoff- man an award for excellence in structural engineering. Other major features include a multi-
purpose room encased in glass and steel, and affectionately called the “Crystal Palace” by those involved in its construc- tion. A greenhouse on the 7th floor was stripped and replaced with new glass. As wonderful as the facility is, the most
important part is that the Department of Fine and Performing Arts can now focus on programming that will be fully sup- ported by the modernization of the space. “Now that it’s done, it allows us to move
into new possibilities for programming,” says April Browning, managing director of fine and performing arts, who has been heavily involved in the renovations since they began in 2004. “We can build new relationships with the community and arts organizations. We have the ability to give the space life as an arts center and hope- fully destination spot.” At the dedication of the Newhart
Family Theatre, Sarah Gabel, chairperson for the fine and performing arts, echoed Browning’s sentiments. “Artists can make art anywhere,” Gabel said. “Arists don’t need beautiful, state-of-the art facilities in which to exercise their creativity. But when we have these spaces, as we now have at Loyola, it inspires us to create works of art we might never have imag- ined otherwise.”
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