Crown jewel in downtown will soon shine brighter

Crown jewel in downtown will soon shine brighter
Amid the redevelopment hubbub currently reshaping the look of downtown Youngstown is one project that merits the community's excitement and support - the 600-seat theater and concert hall adjacent to the majestic Edward W. Powers Auditorium.
Unlike some downtown development projects, for which skeptics abound, few who are familiar with the $4.2 million Eleanor Beecher Flad Pavilion project and its key players could doubt its promising potential for success.
Youngstown's design review panel has approved the look of the concert hall and theater on Chestnut Street in the downtown's West End. It will feature a lobby of green-tinted glass and steel with pivoting walls. Its sleek modernity will complement the classic design of the main 2,300-seat Powers theater.
Dynamic project partners
The pavilion's partners represent stalwart Mahoning Valley institutions with a history of quality, stability and mass appeal: Powers Auditorium, The Youngstown Symphony Society and The Dana School of Music of Youngstown State University.
Powers Auditorium was heralded as "the finest theater ever built" when the Warner Brothers constructed it at a cost of $1.5 million and opened it as the Warner Theater in May 1931. Youngstown was the adopted home of the movie-making titans, and the theater today is on the National Registry of Historic Places. While it flourished as a cinema through the 1950s, the demise of downtown movie houses and the rise of suburban flight nearly brought the wrecking ball to the theater in 1968.
In September 1968, Mr. and Mrs. Edward W. Powers donated $250,000 to save the theater, and the Youngstown Symphony Society acquired the title and began renovations. One year later, the Symphony Center/Powers Auditorium opened with a gala performance of "Die Fledermaus."
The rest is a history of success.
The Youngstown Symphony Orchestra, which began in 1926 as & quot;The Little Symphony Orchestra, & quot; has grown to become an esteemed institution that is anything but little. Today, its concert series has expanded immensely and Symphony Society programming, including the popular Broadway series, shows no signs of shrinking. In physical space, the society completed an east wing addition, featuring a new box office and music library, a few years ago. The concert hall addition is a natural fit for the symphony's and the society's continued development.
So, too, is the natural fit with the Dana School of Music, yet another Valley arts powerhouse. Dana, which opened in Warren in the Reconstruction era as one of six collegiate-level music schools in the nation, is marking its 135th year in the Valley. It, too, has been bursting at the seams. Its base for the past 27 years -- YSU's Bliss Hall -- has already undergone several expansions and renovations. Dana needed a recital hall equal in quality to its internationally recognized music program. Its collaboration with the Symphony Society made for a harmonious match.
Project financed privately
Another harbinger of success for the first newly constructed theater in downtown Youngstown in 70 years is its source of funding -- exclusively private contributions from individuals, corporations and foundations. That in itself stands as testament to the community's support and excitement for the society's expansion project.
But that shouldn't be surprising. Powers Auditorium has long been the crown jewel in downtown Youngstown's artistic identity. We're confident that the Eleanor Beecher Flad Pavilion will serve as a catalyst for an even more expansive and more vibrant downtown entertainment and cultural district.