Ask people what city boasts the largest performing arts center outside of New York City. They’d probably be surprised to learn that the answer is Cleveland.
The not-for-profit Playhouse Square performing arts center attracts more than 1 million visitors each year to it more than 1,000 annual events. And now, thanks in part to Turner Construction Company, Playhouse Square — along with regional theater Cleveland Play House and Cleveland State University at PlayhouseSquare — has a newly updated and expanded home.
The new Allen Theatre Complex, which had been under construction since October of 2010 and includes the addition of three new theaters, officially opened its doors in downtown Cleveland in early March. The goal was to create a cultural arts and education center for both the public and for those Cleveland State University students studying theater, drama and dance at the school.
“This is an important project for Cleveland,” said Jack Kellogg, Turner’s project manager for the Allen Theatre Complex. “This is now the go-to place for professional theater in the city.”
Building a theater is no easy task, especially when theater companies tend to book their shows years in advance. Turner Construction faced a tight deadline, then. The company needed to finish construction to meet Playhouse Square’s show schedule.
The project was also surrounded on three sides by 90-year-old buildings. Construction crews had to take extra steps to avoid damaging these old buildings. Turner relied on vibration monitors to make sure that construction work on the theater project would not damage the structure of the surrounding buildings.
Cleveland’s original Allen Theatre opened in 1921 as a 3,080-seat movie house. In 1997, Turner Construction Company built a modernized stage house with seating for 2,500 and restored the theater’s visually stunning architectural features.
For the current project, Turner updated the theater’s acoustics, lighting and sound capabilities. Turner also built a 47,500-square-foot addition. This addition includes a 512-seat theater within the existing Allen Theater and two new theaters in what was once a surface parking lot adjacent to the original building.
The new addition also includes the KeyBank Concourse, a gateway connecting patrons from a parking garage to the theaters, restaurants and offices in the PlayhouseSquare District.
“Our vision is to be a contemporary, top-tier theater helping to revitalize Cleveland,” said Michael Bloom, artistic director of Cleveland Play House, in a written statement.
Officials with PlayhouseSquare estimate that 150,000 additional guests will visit the PlayhouseSquare District each year thanks to the newly expanded Allen Theatre Complex, a project that was designed by architecture firm Westlake Reed Leskosky.
The news that Cleveland boasts such an active arts and cultural scene might surprise some, but not Kellogg nor the residents who call this Midwest city home.
“Cleveland has some truly amazing theaters,” Kellogg said. “Locally, people are proud of the theaters in the city, as they should be. Outside of the city, I’m not sure that people are aware of just how important arts and culture is to Cleveland.”
