OSHKOSH – The performing arts are coming back to campus in a grand way.
The Grand Oshkosh is temporarily relocating just six blocks away to UW-Oshkosh as the start of a “perfect synergy” that will see the 143-year-old theater housed at UWO’s Theater Arts Center during The Grand’s projected 16-month renovation.
Both UWO Chancellor Manohar Singh and the Grand Oshkosh Director Joe Ferlo confirmed the historic theater’s move this summer ahead of the planned $16 million project set to begin later this year.
“What we’re doing is creating a collaboration that’s long overdue because the programming that happens at the Grand will continue right here in the heart of Oshkosh and no one has to go anywhere to find it,” Ferlo said.
“Yes, it’s good for the Grand, yes, it’s good for the university but the winner is Oshkosh.”
Why is The Grand relocating?
The oldest theater in Wisconsin, The Grand Oshkosh is set to undergo a major renovation project under the Our Grand Moment campaign — a public-private partnership that will expand and modernize the historic venue while doubling the yearly programming.
According to the city of Oshkosh’s downtown redevelopment plan, the project will help The Grand Oshkosh generate $3.5 million in economic impact as a major tourist draw.
What are the logistics of the Grand’s relocation?
Now, the project no longer threatens the theater’s annual programming of 130 events, with The Grand’s shows set to move a kilometer down the road from the theater’s 558-seat venue into the campus’ 512-seat Theater Arts Center.
The Grand’s administrative offices will remain at 101 High Ave. while the box office relocates to the front of the Theater Arts Center.
The Theater Arts Center will also play host to all of The Grand’s other community events, like bingo, trivia, private parties, donor receptions and after-show events as the signage outside is rebranded to The Grand Oshkosh at UW-Oshkosh.
The agreement between the two bodies is a one-year lease with an option to extend, but both UWO and The Grand view the partnership as the “perfect synergy” that needed the continued presence of theater arts.
What does UWO think of the relocation?
Recently hired last July, Singh welcomed The Grand’s relocation as an injection of life into an underused Theater Arts Center, which was suffering during the winding down of the campus’ theater program.
“Many universities in the nation have cut their programs in theater and art because of a misplaced belief that by cutting those programs you’re saving the university money,” said Singh, adding he will do everything to revive the theater program.
“I hold the opposite view in that by cutting those programs you are hallowing the whole universities, with the mission being educate for virtue, not for just skill sets,” he said.
What happens to the Theater Arts Center when The Grand reopens?
Describing the partnership as “long overdue,” both Singh and Ferlo expect the relationship to eventually result in the Theater Arts Center staging Grand programming well beyond the historic 143-year-old theater’s reopening.
Ferlo even envisions a day when the campus’ box office is used to sell tickets to programming at The Grand and vice versa.
It’s not the first collaboration between the two bodies considering UWO’s jazz ensemble plays at the Grand every other year.
“We should keep some of this programming alive for our students and hopefully this might be a catalyst for the community and bringing art back to our lives because that building needs to be an active hub on campus and in the community,” said Ferlo. “There are things uniquely more successful and supported on a college campus, like speaker series, and maybe that’s the future.”
This year’s Grand programming will conclude with Mutts Gone Nuts Unleashed and the Magic of Kevin Spencer on May 16 and 17, respectfully, before the theater begins relocating.
Contact Justin Marville at jmarville@usatodayco.com and follow him on X (formerly Twitter) at @justinmarville.
This article originally appeared on Oshkosh Northwestern: Where to see Grand Oshkosh shows during the 16-month remodel
Reporting by Justin Marville, Oshkosh Northwestern / Oshkosh Northwestern
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
