The professionally designed Henle Dance Pavilion will better support and showcase the growing dance program, help to attract future students and expand programmatic opportunities. This facility also will function as a striking new performance space for campus invitational events, featuring more guest artists and performers, and larger audiences. The Pavilion will replace the current 1,200 square foot studio with a 2,200 square foot dance studio and 1,000 square foot lobby that will double as rehearsal space. These spaces will have twenty foot ceilings that will safely permit lifts and aerials which currently can only be performed on the main stage of the Yulman Theater. The new facility also will include an expanded costume shop,improved storage, faculty offices, meeting rooms and a large windowed lobby overlooking Jackson’s Garden. The Dance Pavilion will connect to the Yulman Theater via a Gallery of Dance and will become a stunning venue in which students and faculty can pursue their artistic passions and express themselves in ways that enrich their Union experience and excite and engage the broader community.
The current need
Union’s current dance studio is housed within the Visual Arts building and was built over 20 years ago to accommodate 12-14 dancers per class. Today’s average class size is more than double that number, and the existing space does not adequately accommodate performers, audience members or related facilities.
