Music, Theatre and Dance Facilities
Bloomsburg Facilities
CU-Bloomsburg's Performing Arts Facilities consist of Mitrani Hall, in Haas Center for the Arts, a 1,850 seat proscenium stage with full fly loft; and the K.S. Gross Auditorium in Carver Hall, a 150-year-old, 600 seat Victorian theater with a full component of stage lighting and sound capabilities. Both facilities are recently renovated with state-of-the-art lighting, sound, and video systems.
Following a generous gift from Marco and Louise Mitrani in 1981 to fund acoustical improvements, the large auditorium of Haas Center was named Mitrani Hall. Renovated in 1996, the auditorium now seats 1,858 people in modern ergonomic theatre seats. Further renovations in 2008, made vast improvements in Haas Center for the Arts classroom, studio, and shop facilities for the Music, Theatre, and Dance department, as well as a more versatile gallery space for the Art Department. Most recently, in January of 2018, Mitrani Hall’s sound system was completely renovated and updated to be a state-of-the-art line array system with all equipment up to industry standard.
Mitrani Hall is now one of the largest and finest indoor auditoriums in Northeast Pennsylvania enabling university students as well as the surrounding communities to experience the best the arts have to offer. The stage is home to many campus performance groups, academic and lecture presentations, the Arts in Bloom Series.
Carver Hall is the icon of CU-Bloomsburg and is included in the National Register of Historic Places. Built in 1869, it has evolved over the years: the dome was added in 1900 to give the building an Independence Hall look, and the clock in the tower came as a result of a fund-raising project by students and faculty in 1911. It houses the offices of the president and the provost and vice president for academic affairs, as well as the Kenneth S. Gross Auditorium on the second floor.
Housed on the second floor of Carver Hall is the lovely Kenneth S. Gross Auditorium. With its full-length windows and stained glass skylight, K.S. Gross’ beauty catches the eye of all who enter the auditorium. Renovated in 2014, this Victorian-era intimate theatre seats 568. Gross is used for lectures and small ensemble productions and is an ideal performance space. The intimacy of the auditorium creates an incredibly unique experience for audiences and performers alike, creating a feeling of connection between them that will not soon be forgotten.
Mansfield Facilities
Named for the composer of Mansfield's Alma Mater, the Will George Butler Center opened in 1969 to meet the special needs of the Music Department.
Will George Butler Music Center (usually just called "Butler Center") has 55 practice rooms, a large choral rehearsal hall, a large band rehearsal room, 3 classrooms, and an excellent recital hall.
The recital hall, Steadman Theater, seats 500 people, has excellent acoustics, and offers a variety of staging and lighting opportunities.
The Butler Center features a state of the art recording studio which is part of our Music Technology program, computer labs for music theory and composition to complement course offerings in these areas and electronic piano classrooms which are available for class instruction in piano and keyboard skills.
The music library occupies the first floor of the North Hall Library. The collection includes more than 10,000 books, 13,000 scores, 13,000 recordings, and streaming audio and video.
Learn more about the Butler Music Center and Steadman Auditorium from our University Libraries archives.
Straughn Hall is a 950 seat performance hall built in 1931 and completely renovated in 2016. It is the home for all opera and musical theatre productions, plus various other campus events and visiting artists. It features a state of the art lighting and sound system and fly system.
Learn more about Straughn Hall from our University Libraries archives.
