PROJECT DETAILS
LOCATION : Aurora, Illinois
MARKET : Education
AREA :
Transformation through modernization
This renovation and addition for Stephens Hall on the Aurora University campus, designed by Cordogan Clark, expands their community outreach and enrichment program while transforming this prominent building to blend with the new design of the campus.
This project includes the complete redesign and modernization of Perry Theatre, with a new lobby / atrium addition. The renovation of this former lecture hall and adjacent spaces includes the addition of a new atrium and the renovation of the student grill located on the lower level. This provides the University with a new state-of-the-art venue to accommodate the University's outreach programs.
This $1.8M facility was named The Aurora Foundation Center for Community Enrichment, in recognition of a $500,000 grant from the Aurora Foundation. The new theater allows the University to host a number of community-based academic and enrichment programs, including an annual community symposium hosted by Aurora University and the Aurora Foundation. Although the 170-seat Perry Theatre is officially part of the Aurora University campus, in addition to hosting student productions and events it also hosts the Borealis Theater Company, an independent troupe that performs everything from serious drama to children's theater. The Perry Theatre is also the home of the Fox Valley Shakespeare Festival.
