Mission

Wesleyan University's Center for the Arts, housed in an eleven-building complex designed by Kevin Roche/John Dinkeloo Architects, opened in 1973. By juxtaposing several highly flexible buildings, the architecture preserves the individual integrity of each of the arts while at the same time encouraging creative interaction between them. Undergraduate programs are offered in Studio Art, Art History, Dance, Film Production and History, Music and Theater, with a graduate program in Ethnomusicology.

The primary mission of the Center for the Arts is to serve the curricular needs of 2,899 men and women (2,725 full-time, 10 part-time undergraduates; 164 graduates) who seek the highest quality of experience in liberal learning. A significant part of this function is discharged through producing a vigorous program of performances and exhibitions, both imported and local, throughout the year. All such programs, whether a part of the curricular offering in the arts or as a supplement to them, are open to the public and maintain an artistic excellence commensurate with the high quality of the institution.

The Center is sensitive to its presence in the community and continually works to expand its audiences and to promote the excellence and diversity of the performing arts. Discounted rates are offered for students and senior citizens; most facilities are accessible for the handicapped. (The University's planning office continues to work to provide equal access in all spaces for disabled citizens.) During the 1996-97 academic year the Center scheduled approximately 475 concerts, recitals, lectures, films, exhibitions, dance and theater productions attracting an audience of approximately 30,000.