State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota (SCF) is building a new Studio for the Performing Arts with the help of a $10,000 grant from The Scheidel Foundation to kick off the $3.5 million capital campaign.
The new Studio for the Performing Arts, which will be funded largely through private donations, will be strategically joined to SCF’s Neel Performing Arts Center and Howard Studio Theatre. It is being developed to support the growth of music, art and theatrical programs, and as the largest community performing arts center in Manatee County to provide an outreach to populations with limited access to such amenities.
The Studio is designed to be an inviting space for students and the community. The new $3.5 million studio will offer intimate performances, deeper learning experiences for students in practice rooms and recital areas with ideal acoustics. A nearly 6,000-square-foot recital hall will include a grand piano, performance lighting and sound system with recording capability. It will seat 175 visitors for concerts and shows. The room will be used as the primary rehearsal space for musical theatre, choral and vocal classes. It also will be ideal for SCF’s master classes, featuring visiting artists, and recitals.
A new 1,100-square-foot dance studio will offer opportunities for students to study movement and staging. The studio includes retractable curtains, moveable seating and a floor designed specifically for dance. The new facility will include 1,620-square-feet of practice rooms. An instrument storage room will allow SCF to provide professional instruments to students who might not otherwise be able to afford them, offering SCF’s music program a recruiting advantage and students an opportunity to perform at their next level.
To discuss naming rights or ways to become a benefactor, contact Barbara Bourgoin at bourgob@SCF.edu or 941-752-5398.
