Art by Brian Serway
While much of the country has had to pause operations during spring 2020, construction on the James C. and Mary B. Martin Center for the Arts, on State of Franklin Road in Johnson City, Tennessee, has been able to continue with only a few COVID-19-related delays.
“There’s light at the end of the tunnel,” says Anita DeAngelis, director of the Martin School at ETSU. “It has been a long process, especially since it’s been nearly a 30-year dream for the university and the community to have a performing arts center.
“Construction started in fall 2017, actually about three years ago, so the fact a building this size and complexity is this close to the conclusion of construction is pretty remarkable. “Denark Construction and the design team from architects McCarty, Holsaple, McCarty have done a remarkable job,” DeAngelis says.”
In the 1,200-seat ETSU Foundation Grand Hall, the fly system, multi-level orchestra pit and some of the audio equipment are installed. Dressing rooms, green rooms and offices are ready for furniture. The orchestra shell will soon be constructed, DeAngelis says, and the stage floor will be installed following the completion of the shell.
Terrazzo flooring and carpet, as well as chandeliers, light fixtures and elevator in the 3,000-square-foot Tindall Lobby are in place, with the lobby video monitors and signage still to be mounted.
The Recital Hall, that seats slightly more than 200, has most of its finishing touches with the exception of seating and drapery. The Martin Center’s wood finishes are accented by a natural wood floor in this “more intimate” venue, DeAngelis says.
ETSU’s Department of Music will transfer many of its recitals and chamber events to the state-of-the-art Martin Center Recital Hall.
“We are excited about our new recital hall for small, more intimate performances, and the large Grand Hall for our larger performances,” says Music Chair Dr. Matthew Potterton. “We have not had a good performance space on campus. This will provide a state-of-the-art recital hall and grand hall for our performances. We have been so thankful for area churches that have allowed us to perform in their sanctuaries but a university needs to have a professional performance space, and we are about to open the doors to this space.”
The third venue in the Martin Center is the Bert C. Bach Theatre, a black box theater with flexible seating and staging options. A tension wire grid above the staging area allows lighting to be hung wherever needed for differing productions, while all surfaces, including ceiling and floor are painted black for maximum lighting effect.
“The Bert Bach flex stage will provide our students with state-of-the-art technology and performance opportunities,” says Department of Theatre and Dance Chair Karen Brewster. “Our designers and tech staff will be able to do almost anything in that space. We can conceptualize our shows in almost any way we think is best, not limited by proscenium walls or fixed seating. It will be a wonderful place for theater-making, teaching our students and entertaining our audiences.”
Outside of the arts center, landscaping is well underway on the Sonia S. King Plaza on the southern front of the center, while walkways are still to be completed on the plaza.
As these finishing touches are made to the building and exterior areas, music, theater and dance and Mary B. Martin School of the Arts are exploring ways to safely – and possibly virtually – share their arts programming with the campus and the region. All these programs are looking at live-streamed and pre-recorded/streamed events, as well as outdoor staging.
For more information, visit www.etsu.edu/martincenter or call 423-439-8587. To support the center with a gift toward programming, contact Michael Webb, director of development for ETSU’s College of Arts and Sciences, at 423-439-5775.
