- Valdosta State University is investing $36.5 million in a new Performing Arts Center.
- The center will be a 43,128 square foot facility for VSU's Theater and Dance departments.
- It's expected to open in spring 2026.
- Watch the video to see how the center aims to revitalize a neglected area of Valdosta
Broadcast transcript:
A new performing art center is coming to the Azalea City, thanks to Valdosta State University's $36.5 million investment.
"We're at a 50 year old building and this is going to give us so many more opportunities to bring technical theater, new innovations…"
I'm Malia Thomas, your neighborhood reporter in Valdosta, and I'm seeing what a space like this will do for our neighborhoods.
Hank Ryan is the artistic director of our Peach State Summer Theater. He's been in our art scene for over 30 years.
"I went to undergraduate here. I worked in 1991 at Jekyll Island Musical Theatre Festival, which was Peach State Summer Theater and then I've directed throughout the years."
He tells me current facilities at VSU's campus are older, which makes it harder to instruct performers and run multiple community events. Not only can he not wait to use the new center, but he can't wait to show off to visitors as well.
"It's not only going to suit our local crowd, but also the outreach outside of the state outside as far as we can go. I think it will be a destination to bring people to Valdosta."
And that reach will be far. The performing arts center is going to be a 43,128 square foot facility designed to meet the needs of VSU's Theater and Dance departments. With more space comes more shows, and more shows comes more visitors from all around the region. Having been in the works since 2015, Blake Pearce, executive director of special projects for VSU Academic Affairs, says that the site will have the dual purpose of revitalizing a previously torn down area.
"You're seeing this lot in a derelict facility that we have been here for over a decade even the empty lot for the past couple of years they're going to be delighted."
The center is scheduled to open spring 2026. In Valdosta, I'm Malia Thomas, reporting for ABC27.
