New theatre for boys school

After being put on hold for many years, the St. Michael’s College School’s revitalization plan was finally completed on April 10 with a gala celebrating the opening of its new Centre for the Arts.

“The theatre’s been talked about since the beginning of the revitalization plan,” said the school’s director of communications, Michael De Pellegrin.

The plan, which started in 1996, included doubling the size of the school building and redoing its field.

“The previous L-shape to the school is now a rectangle, and we also added a lecture hall, expanded the cafeteria and doubled the size of the gym,” De Pellegrin said.

The new 450-seat theatre commemorates the school’s long history in the arts. St. Michael’s has taught dramatic arts for over 100 years.

“We never really had our own theatre,” said De Pellegrin. “Kids had nowhere to perform.”

However, the theatre won’t only benefit the students and faculty of St. Michael’s but also the community.

“We already have people wanting to rent the place,” De Pellegrin said.

The opening gala at the center featured live concerts by St. Michael’s Alumni Orchestra, The Nylons, and the casts of Phantom of the Opera, Twelve Angry Men and the Three Sopranos.

“The gala was a conclusion to the work that went into the centre,” DePellegrin said, “But now we see a learning centre perhaps in the future.”