Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Massachusetts Institute of Technology: W97

  • 10/01/17
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

PHOTOS © JON SACHS, MIT SHASS COMMUNICATIONS

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has opened its first dedicated performing arts facility on its Cambridge, MA, campus. The completion of W97, a newly designed building for MIT’s vibrant Theater Arts program, signals a strong commitment to this central component of the Institute’s arts curriculum that has outgrown its current dispersed facilities. Enrollment in theater arts classes has more than doubled at MIT since 2012.

The Theater Arts program, which had previously been spread among five small shared campus facilities, will now be consolidated within a major dedicated 25,000-square-foot building — designed by designLAB Architects of Boston — which has taken shape within the walls of a former warehouse that had been slated for demolition.

MIT students and faculty now have a two-story flexible black box theater with 150-180 seats, state-of-the-art rehearsal spaces and design studios, offices and dressing rooms. The building was designed with production in mind and to maximize the possibilities for experimentation with new theater technologies. Other studios in the building provide space for smaller performances, faculty and student workshops, rehearsals and classes in theatrical practice, design and technical arts.

The new facility will allow for continued development of a theater research program focused on experimental works and performance, and potentially a small, focused graduate program. Moreover, the MIT Theater Arts program will now be on par with comparable programs at peer institutions.

Sustainability was also a project priority, with the goal of achieving LEED Gold certification. Sustainable elements include new windows and roofing, a solar-ready building, LED lighting with occupancy sensors and upgraded HVAC systems.

MIT President L. Rafael Reif will dedicate the building on November 16, 2017, in a celebration that will highlight the range of both the building and the programs in Music and Theater Arts.

This article originally appeared in the issue of .

Featured

  • Academy of Classical Education Breaks Ground in Louisiana

    Charter Schools USA (CSUSA) recently announced the groundbreaking of a new public charter school in Covington, La., according to a news release. The Academy of Classical Education at Covington will enroll students in grades K–8 and is scheduled for completion in August 2026, just in time for the new school year.

  • Arizona District Breaks Ground on Community Training, Learning Center

    The Tolleson Union High School District (TUHSD) in Tolleson, Ariz., recently broke ground on a new Training & Learning Center (TLC) for both district professionals and the community at large, according to a news release. The 90,000-square-foot facility has an estimated completion date of spring 2027.

  • University of Arizona Approves New Residence Hall

    The Arizona Board of Regents recently approved plans for a new residence hall at the University of Arizona in Tucson, Ariz., according to a news release. The new facility is scheduled to open in fall 2028 and have the capacity for more than 1,200 students, enforcing a new university expectation that all first-year students live on campus.

  • From Approval to Opening: Inside Travis Unified School District’s Fast Tracked Campus Expansion

    The Travis Unified School District (TUSD) in northern California includes several elementary and high schools serving over 5,400 students. In 2024, the TUSD Board approved the addition of sixth grade to the Golden West Middle School campus for the 2025–26 school year, setting in motion an accelerated effort to bring new facilities online in less than a year.