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By Emme Schaefer

The McVay Center is a brand-new addition to the Principia campus that has sparked much joy among performing arts students. The building promises to be a “new home” for concerts, plays, and all manner of performances. But why, exactly, is this new venue such an upgrade from our other performance halls? Sophomore Paige Lesko and junior Zoë Wade share their perspectives on what makes McVay special.

Paige Lesko

“McVay is a lot different than the other spaces such as the Davis Black Box and Cox Auditorium because it…has a lot of differences in the architecture that are unique to this Maybeck building, like a lift at the front of the stage…and a pit. I feel more inspired when I’m dancing in that space because there’s a huge window behind the stage and the light just shines in. There is a noticeable difference in the quality of the building because it was built with money from donors, as a gift. I feel like the atmosphere is totally different.”

Zoë Wade

“[McVay] is the perfect space for performing and rehearsing, and it has all these amazing additions to it. It’s also really nice to have another performing space, because the Black Box is for small shows while Cox is for more official stuff, but we needed somewhere where we could [put on] big shows. I think the audience will definitely notice a difference with McVay. Everything is so fresh right now, especially for audiences that are used to having old seats or seeing a pretty run-down stage. It has really good acoustics; your voice just bounces off the walls. The way the sound carries, the way everything is right there in front of you…it’s great.”