Downtown State College will soon be home to the area's newest multi-purpose performing and fine arts facility.
The Citizen's Bank Theatre at the Penn State Downtown Theatre Center, 127 S. Allen St., received a $500,000 donation from Citizens Bank and its foundation, said Penn State President Graham Spainer in an early morning press conference yesterday.
"It's going to be one of the finest little theaters in Pennsylvania," Spanier said. The theater is scheduled to officially open June 2 with Neil's Simon's Broadway Bound, he added.
The theater is designed to house music, drama, midnight specials and academic functions.
Ralph Papa, president of Citizens Bank in the Western region, was on hand to present the check to Spanier.
Papa, a former resident of State College, was on the board of Pennsylvania's Centre Stage, a theater group that combines professionals with student actors from Penn State and other universities.
The group has been a part of Penn State theater for almost 20 years.
"I'm pleased in one small way we're able to provide something everyone will enjoy," Papa said.
Papa said he thought this theater would become a general focus for the community.
"Arts provides so much in the way of economic stimulus," Papa said.
Spanier said the center would have a "creative" marquee out front with lights.
Other features of the center will include a ticket box office, where tickets for any type of event on campus may be purchased, Spanier said.
Tickets for events at Eisenhower Auditorium, the Pavilion Theater, and various concerts and intercollegiate athletics also will be available. A fine arts gallery of rotating exhibits also would be apart of the 150-seat theater, he added.
Spanier said "modest retail" or memorabilia related to theater projects also would be available on site.
Dan Carter, who is the director of the School of Theatre on campus, said this project has been a dream for arts enthusiasts like Papa for more than 10 years.
"It all comes down to people ... to come together to form art," Carter said.
