Colony Hall, a 50,000-square-foot addition to the Paul Mellon Arts Center, will include an auditorium for more than 1,000 people.
Behind the Paul Mellon Arts Center (PMAC), construction for Choate’s much awaited Colony Hall began in mid-December. Ms. Kalya Yannatos, the Director of the PMAC, said this construction is a way of Choate’s “recognizing the need to allow the arts program to be fully supported in the way that it deserves.” The new building will also fulfill several long-held goals of the School, such as providing seats for the entire student body. Head of School, Dr. Alex Curtis, expressed his appreciation for this new ability to bring the school together, saying, “It is the people that make this place special.”
The addition to campus will provide tremendous space for the numerous art programs Choate offers. Ms. Yannatos said, “This building will untangle the music program and the theatre program.” Because the PMAC’s main stage was designed specifically for theatre, the new arts building’s facilities will better accommodate the orchestras, wind ensemble, jazz ensemble, and choruses.
Ethan Luk ’20 said, “I hope the auditorium will have better acoustics than our current auditorium. As a member of Symphony Orchestra, we have to work twice as hard in the auditorium to project sound and make the pieces resonate because the current auditorium was built for theatrical performances and not musical performances.”
Mr. Phil Ventre, the Orchestral and Jazz Ensemble Director, explained, “In a concert hall, everyone has to hear each other very quickly.” He added, “Now we’re going to have a home for the music program and a concert hall with very fine acoustics.” In addition to catering towards the music program, the new auditorium has features which will allow speakers in to be heard in an intimate way. Dr. Curtis said that the acoustic design of the building is “a brilliant solution to the problem we had.”
In addition to the new concert hall, Colony Hall will provide classrooms for all the music classes. These classrooms will also be acoustically designed in order to ensure that one classroom will not let in another’s music. The building will also include a recital hall, rehearsal hall, music library, instrument storage room, and offices for all the arts teachers.
New facilities for Choate’s dance program are also underway. Heather Shao ’19, a member of Arts Concentration for dance, explained, “The dance studio is really claustrophobic right now; there aren’t any windows and the environment is just generally not good for cultivating creativity, so having a new studio with better lighting and atmosphere will really help.” She added that Choate’s Dance Company doesn’t have enough space to work and so is regularly asked to practice on the basketball court in the gym.
However, the construction of such an extensive arts building doesn’t come without challenges. Ms. Yannatos explained, “The reality of designing a really big building like this is you have desires for what you can’t support — and the realities set in.” Ms. Yannatos suggested that providing each practice room with its own window that allows in real light may not be possible. Many of these practice rooms will be buried into the hillside.
Despite these challenges, Choate’s arts faculty is very thankful for the efforts of all who were involved in the building’s planning process. Ms. Yannatos said that much of the work was done by Dr. Curtis. Ms. Yannatos added that she was so grateful for his support of this new building. Mr. Ventre also expressed his gratitude. “This is a wonderful
, wonderful initiative that Dr. Curtis has taken,” he said.
In addition to the arts faculty, many students are excited for the opening of Colony Hall, which is expected in 2019, Parth Mody ’19 said, “I think the auditorium will give some students better access to the tools they need to pursue some of their arts-related interests. I think it will also encourage more people to get involved in the arts. It’ll also provide a better space for all-school meetings.” Luk went on, “I think it’s great that the auditorium will fit the whole school.”
With a smile, Ms. Yannatos said, “I hope it’s a happy space for everyone,” adding, “and I trust it will be!”
