• Performing Arts Center brochure (PDF)
• Madison Century Campaign
• Development Office
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• Academic Programs
• College of Visual and Performing Arts
  • School of Music
  • School of Theatre and Dance

About the Performing Arts Center

Transforming Campus and Access to the Arts 

The Performing Arts Center will combine two major facilities: the Dorothy Thomasson Estes Center for Theatre and Danceand the  Shirley Hanson Roberts Center for Music Performance.   Standing on the west side of Main street, directly across from Wilson Hall, the Performing Arts Center will at once boldly affirm the university’s commitment to the arts – an essential component completing a liberal arts curriculum – and symbolically complete Madison’s cherished quadrangle.

With the Performing Arts Center, Madison’s cultural life will focus on a primary space and be more available to students, faculty and the community. With its prominence on Main Street and planned access for events of all kinds, the Performing arts Center will undoubtedly take its place as an important intersection of ideas and people.

A 784-car parking garage, which opened in Summer 2007 to the center’s west, will double as student parking when no events are scheduled. From the deck, the way to campus will bring students through an impressive plaza between the Dorothy Thomasson Estes Center for theatre and Dance and the Shirley Hanson Roberts Center for Music Performance. This plaza will be a new gateway onto campus and it willremind students daily that the arts are a prominent part of Madison.

An Architectural union

The Quadrangle has been considered the heart of campus during every era of Madison’s history. Bordered by Alumnae, Sheldon, Spotswood and the Music Building to the north; Keezel, Wilson and Maury Halls to the east; Jackson, Harrison, Ashby and Wampler to the south, the Quad represents a distinctive and historic achievement. The National Historic Register lists the Quadrangle at James Madison University as a national treasure.

On the western side of the Quad, the Performing Arts Center offers the university an unparalleled opportunity to add aesthetically, structurally and programmatically to Madison’s cherished Quadrangle. It is an opportunity planners have considered with great earnestness and creativity. In addition to creating state-of-the-art spaces in which to stage and enjoy theatre, dance and music, the Performing Arts Center will maintain the integrity of existing forms and elements found on the Quad. It will uphold Wilson Hall as the Quad’s prominent architectural and structural feature and offer a new, more accessible point of entrance and egress to this noble space.

A new Partnership

During the last quarter of a century James Madison university grew in response to the changing needs of the Commonwealth and of society. Facilities and programs for business and education grew in the 1980s. Facilities and programs in science and technology developed at a great pace in the 1990s. Along the way, facilities and programs in the health professions grew as well. These campus additions took place as the university accepted more and more students to keep up with the Commonwealth’s growing population. As a result, James Madison university has been transformed; it is not only larger, but it is even more highly regarded academically.

As the university plots its continued progress, it is now time for the arts to take center stage. In 2002, Virginians voted to pass a bond resolution that included significant capital funding for James Madison university. A $51 million portion of that bond was earmarked to build the new Performing Arts Center. This is a meaningful and timely project because it will allow Madison — after its tremendous growth in specific program areas and enrollment — to maintain its commitment to a balanced liberal arts education.

As a part of the bond financing arrangement for the Performing arts Center, the Commonwealth expects the university to fund a portion of costs to complete the center with gifts from private donors. With the project estimated to cost more than $68 million, James Madison University is reaching out to alumni and friends to realize the entire vision.

For donors interested in making gifts that can transform the university and the community, the Performing Arts Center is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Contact the JMU Office of Development at (800) 296-6162 for more information. 

How you can get involved

Generous donors have already contributed significantly to the Performing Arts Center, and giving and naming opportunities remain as the project moves forward.

To learn more about the Performing Arts Center, download the brochure (PDF file).

Facts about the Fine and Performing Arts at JMU

• One of the largest programs on the East Coast
• Programs include Music, theater, dance, art and art history
• Majors number more than 1,000
• School of Music considered the best in Virginia
• School of Theatre and Dance twice chosen to perform at the Kennedy Center by the American College Theatre Festival
• Dancers invited to perform at the National American College Dance Festival