New theater at Catholic high school
Construction has begun on a new 300-seat theater complex at Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory in San Francisco, marking the opening salvo in the school’s revitalization plan, “2020 Vision.” Set to open in fall 2010, the theater will occupy a formerly open courtyard at the school’s De Paul Campus, located at the corner of Ellis and Gough Streets.
Eileen Clisham, SHCP’s director of communications, said the school’s investment in the performing arts bucks the trend seen around the country in public schools.
“It is such a great feeling to be a part of a school that is building a theater at a time when such programs are getting back-burnered at some schools due to tough economic times,” Clisham said. “SHCP certainly is fortunate and has been blessed with leaders so committed to the vision of the school’s founders.”
School staff told Catholic San Francisco the new building will solve two problems: first, since SHCP opened its La Salle campus in 1980, the courtyard has increasingly fallen into disuse; second, the school’s present theater, a repurposed cafeteria, is inadequate to faculty and student needs.
Adjacent to the construction site of its replacement, the current theater has less than half the seating capacity, no dedicated backstage and no dressing rooms for productions requiring costumes.
Christian Bohm, director of music at SHCP, said the old theater’s inadequacies forced many performances to be held outside the school. Bohm said the new facility will give the school’s music program a venue equal to the talent of its students, who have performed at venues around the country, at the Vatican and elsewhere in Europe.
“In effect, we will soon have a professional theatre with all of the technical needs that are required, whereas before we were doing shows in a cafeteria with lights strung up,” Bohm said. “The architectural plans on paper are as close to perfect as I could envision given the space and financial considerations.”
Francine Torres-Kelly, director of the school’s drama department, said the new theater will broaden the scope of the performing arts at SHCP.
“We will be able to do full-length productions with bigger casts, offer more musical concert series and further develop the dance program that is just starting to bloom,” Torres-Kelly said. “We have an abundance of talent here that really deserves more audience than we have been able to accommodate.”
Once the new theater is complete, the old space will be converted into two large rooms for the music department. John Vigo, SHCP’s director of institutional advancement, said the school hopes to have the space completed by the time the new theater opens but the timing will be contingent upon funding.
Kirsten De Leon, 17 and a senior SHCP student, said while construction has been a minor inconvenience, the results will be positive.
“It will give the productions to come that extra pizzazz that we all want,” De Leon said. “I would have liked for it to have been built a year earlier, but that’s just me being jealous. I can’t wait to sit in those new cushioned chairs watching my friends act next year. I hope the new theater encourages more people to discover the arts and develop an appreciation that they may not have had before.”
The “Vision 2020” project includes plans for a new science and technology center, an expanded athletics field, an aquatics center and additional parking, all pending funds. The school will also enhance its curriculum, with additional advanced placement courses, new distance learning capabilities and the continued incorporation of technology in the classroom.
To remain accessible for students of all economic backgrounds, Vigo said SHCP is working to increase the amount of funding available for scholarships while continuing to grow the school’s endowment.
Live video of the construction in progress can be viewed from the school’s website, www.shcp.edu. Under the “QuickLinks” tab at the top-right, select “Live Construction Webcam.”
Owned by the Archdiocese of San Francisco and sponsored by the De La Salle Christian Brothers and the Daughters of Charity, Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory was the first high school to offer Catholic co-education in San Franciscao. The school was formed in 1987 from the merging of two of the city’s oldest Catholic high schools, Sacred Heart High School, founded in 1874, and Cathedral High School, founded in 1852.
By Michael Vick
From October 9, 2009 issue of Catholic San Francisco.
