Community invited to attend Waldron Arts Center Reopening Celebration on Thursday, October 13

BLOOMINGTON – The City of Bloomington and Constellation Stage & Screen will celebrate the reopening of the John Waldron Arts Center on Thursday, October 13 from 5-7 p.m.

John Waldron Arts Center

The facility has been closed since July 1, 2022, when Constellation, an organization that formed as a merger of Cardinal Stage, Bloomington Playwrights Project, and Pigasus Institute, took on the management of the Waldron Arts Center and initiated a series of interior renovations. 

The celebration will feature an exhibition of work by the Bloomington Photography Club in the Waldron’s Visual Arts Galleries. Light hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar will be available in the building’s newly completed cafe. Mayor John Hamilton and new Gallery Manager Huner Emin will make remarks in the galleries at 5:30 p.m. The event is free and open to the public. 

Constellation Stage & Screen’s inaugural performance of The Importance of Being Earnest will also be performed at 7:30 p.m. in the Waldron Auditorium. Tickets for the show can be purchased at seeconstellation.org/events.

“We are excited to have this historical space that has been an anchor for arts in Bloomington ready to reopen,” said Mayor John Hamilton. “The merger that formed Constellation and the renovations of the Waldron together usher in an exciting new era of arts in our community.” 

Background

The ownership of the Waldron reverted to the City of Bloomington in January 2021 following its use by Ivy Tech Community College as classroom, performance, and display space since 2010.

At the recommendation of the community-led Waldron Task Force (bloomington.in.gov/news/2021/05/06/4840), the City committed $515,000 for capital improvements to address deferred maintenance on the facility as part of the Recover Forward initiative to help the community recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. After reopening and managing the facility from January – June 2022, the City entered a five-year agreement with Constellation Stage & Screen to allow the new theater and film company to manage the daily operations of the John Waldron Arts Center for five years (bloomington.in.gov/news/2022/08/08/5262).  

About Constellation Stage & Screen

Established in 2022 as a result of a three-way merger between Bloomington Playwright’s Project, Cardinal Stage, and Pigasus Institute, Constellation aims to connect audiences through world-class theater and film.

Each theatrical season features an exciting mix of original plays and musicals, established works, family and holiday classics, and theater for young audiences shows. Throughout the year, we will develop and produce multiple film projects and over time will create a new work development pipeline where projects can progress from the page, to stage, to screen! Learn more about Constellation Stage & Screen at seeconstellation.org.

About Recover Forward

Recover Forward is a multi-year initiative to help our community rebound and thrive as we come out of the COVID-19 pandemic, moving toward greater racial, economic, and climate justice as we do so.

More than $15 million has been approved to date by the City Council for critical investments. Recover Forward Bloomington includes $9 million from the federal American Rescue Plan Act and $6 million from City reserve funds. Learn more at bloomington.in.gov/recoverforward.