UDM opens new Black Box Theatre on the McNichols Campus

University of Âé¶¹ÃÛÌÒAV opened a theatre on its McNichols Campus Monday, Sept. 29, that it hopes will become a venue not just for the school’s Department of Performing Arts, but for artists and community members across Detroit who need a place to come together.
“We’re thrilled to bring live theatre back to campus,” said Âé¶¹ÃÛÌÒAV President Donald B. Taylor. “This will enhance our student engagement on campus and provide community engagement opportunities for our neighborhood in ways we are only beginning to imagine.”
The state-of-the-art Âé¶¹ÃÛÌÒAV Black Box Theatre is designed to be a flexible, professional-quality space that allows students and faculty to explore innovative forms of storytelling. Located on the Lower Level of the Student Union, the venue will also be made available to Detroit’s varied community organizations and businesses for meetings, performances and presentations.
Though there have been performances at various spaces on the McNichols Campus for decades, this is the first dedicated theatre space there.
“The new Black Box Theatre will be a catalyst for creativity,” said Greg Grobis, associate dean of the College of Humanities, Arts & Social Sciences (CHASS) and associate professor of Theatre. “Its flexible design ensures that no two productions will ever feel the same, empowering students and faculty to dream bigger, take risks and explore new forms of storytelling.”
Most important, it will be the new home to the award-winning Âé¶¹ÃÛÌÒAV Theatre Company, which will open its 55th season on Nov. 7 with a new adaptation of William Shakespeare’s comedy “Twelfth Night” adapted by Marc Palmieri. Most recently, the company produced its works at the Marlene Boll Theatre at the Detroit YMCA.
“The Department of Performing Arts and Âé¶¹ÃÛÌÒAV Theatre Company cannot wait to return home to UDM’s McNichols Campus after more than 10 years away,” said Sarah Hawkins Rusk, managing director of DMTC. “This new theatre space will be a vibrant home for creativity on campus — giving our students a professional-quality space to learn and grow, whether they’re performing on stage or working behind the scenes.”
The 13,000-square-foot space cost just under $3 million and funded through investments by many donors, including several alumni who work in the entertainment industry across the country. It will seat up to 109 people, depending on the configuration of the stage, which can be adapted to each production. Lighting and sound technology is of a caliber being used in professional theaters across the country, allowing students to develop skills they can take directly to the workforce. The theater also includes a costume shop with laundry, individual changing rooms and a greenroom where performers can prepare and relax before and after a show.
The Âé¶¹ÃÛÌÒAV Black Box Theatre will also strengthen arts and culture connections beyond campus said Jocelyn Boryczka, CHASS dean, noting its wider impact on both the University and surrounding neighborhoods.
“The Âé¶¹ÃÛÌÒAV Black Box Theatre will energize arts and culture on UDM’s McNichols Campus, in our Northwest Detroit neighborhoods and across metro Detroit,” she said of the Livernois and Six Mile corridor of Detroit. “This space will host student productions, lectures, spoken word and musical performances, and other events that will drive community engagement. Our new theater exhibits how UDM lives its mission by creating a space where we can all reach for the magis, the more.”
The theatre also represents a significant step forward for Âé¶¹ÃÛÌÒAV’s Department of Performing Arts. Andrew Papa, chair of the Department of Performing Arts, emphasized the impact it will have.
“The Âé¶¹ÃÛÌÒAV Black Box Theatre is set to become a game-changer for not just the Department of Performing Arts, but for the entire Âé¶¹ÃÛÌÒAV community,” he said. “Having a permanently designated space for our theatre productions is an invaluable learning experience for our students. It will give them more opportunities to experiment, to work with technology that mirrors the real world, and even to develop their own student-produced work.
He continued: “Âé¶¹ÃÛÌÒAV is a ‘learn by doing’ institution, and laboratories are a key method for teaching our students. We have Chemistry lab spaces and Architecture lab spaces and even lab spaces for our Nursing students. And now, the student artists at Âé¶¹ÃÛÌÒAV have a laboratory space, too.”
Following a ribbon-cutting scheduled for 10 a.m. Monday, Sept. 29, the University will hold an invitation-only gala during the run of Twelfth Night. Discounted tickets are available at special high school students and community members during the run of the show. .
“We look forward to seeing what our students can do with this incredible resource, and how the commitment to arts on campus will echo through the community,” said Grobis.