Point Park University placed the final steel beams on its new $15.4 million multi-studio dance complex on Feb. 1st. Located in the 200 block of Blvd. of the Allies, the 42,000 square-foot facility will feature four spacious studios and host national dance competitions and performances. The project makes Pittsburgh home to the nation's most innovative dance facility, as the LEED-certified complex was designed during an extensive benchmarking process that involved some of the world's most prestigious dance companies and schools, including
Juilliard and
North Carolina School of the Arts. Project architect is
The Design Alliance; the general contractor is
Turner Construction.
Three pairs of tap, ballet and jazz dance shoes were raised along with the steel beams during a ceremony that paid tribute to the university’s nationally acclaimed dance program. Slated to open during the fall of 2007, the new three-story facility is expected to boost the cultural life of both the university and downtown. “With the addition of a new dance complex, Point Park will be able to boast teaching and rehearsal facilities as fine as the students, faculty and staff who work within their walls,” said Susan Stowe, chair of the Dance Department.
Part of the university's Conservatory of Performing Arts, Point Park’s dance program currently enrolls 242 students from throughout the U.S. and abroad. In 2006, more than 800 applicants competed for 83 spots. Graduates of the program have advanced to careers on Broadway and with dance companies such as David Parsons in New York City and Les Ballets Jazz in Montreal.
Writer: Jennifer Baron
Source: Ginny Frizzi
Photograph copyright © Jonathan Greene