The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
New theater to be named for Feldberg Family
The Crested Butte Center for the Arts has announced that with a multimillion-dollar closing gift from Teddy Feldberg, it has completed fundraising for its new building. Including the Feldberg family contribution, the Center for the Arts capital campaign has raised gifts and pledges totaling the $16.5 million needed to complete construction on the new facility.
The Center for the Arts will now focus on raising $2 million for its endowment, which is also essential to the success of the project.
With this gift, the performing arts theater will be named for the Feldberg family. The gift is a fitting tribute to a family with a rich philanthropic tradition and a long history of giving in the Crested Butte community, going back over 40 years.
“It struck me as the perfect way to honor my husband, Stanley, who was a patron of the arts, and who treasured the music he enjoyed for years in Crested Butte. He was always mindful of giving back to a community that gave so much to him,” said Teddy Feldberg.
From the first year the Center opened its doors in 1986, charitable support from Stanley and Teddy Feldberg provided essential funding for arts programs and education, as well as for capital improvements. The Feldberg’s daughter, Margery, along with her husband, Dr. Jeremy Levin, are also devoted arts patrons who have long supported the Center for the Arts and Crested Butte Music Festival. Margery was part of the original task force that commissioned the needs assessment that justified a new arts facility more than 20 years ago, and she continued to work through the years to get a performing arts theater built in Crested Butte. She previously served as president of the Mt. Crested Butte Performing Arts Center, which, working collaboratively with the Center for the Arts, sought to build an up-mountain facility.
Said Margery Feldberg, “I am beyond thrilled that my family’s gift will ensure that at last, we will have a high quality performing arts facility. This is undeniably fabulous for the community and its visitors. Kudos to Jenny Birnie and the Center board for having the courage to proceed and the conviction to persevere.”
This summer, the Crested Butte Music Festival will use the Center’s existing theater before moving into the new theater for the 2019 season, providing the music festival with a long-term home. The flexibility of seating configurations and floor spaces in the new facility will be perfect for presenting chamber music concerts, operas, gypsy jazz, orchestra events and other musical genres. The Crested Butte Film Festival also recently announced its formal partnership with the Center for the Arts. State-of-the-art lighting, sound and visual technology will enhance the world-class films that will be screened in the new world-class theater.
Executive director Jenny Birnie said, “I am deeply grateful to Teddy and to her children, Margery Feldberg and Mark Feldberg. The Feldberg family has supported the Center for the Arts from year one, and it’s their commitment, vision and incredible generosity that secures the future of the arts for this community.”
Three spaces in the expanded arts facility will be publicly acknowledged as the Feldberg Family Theater and the Feldberg Family East and West Courtyards. Scheduled to open in May 2019, the new theater will include space for up to 500 patrons, a balcony and dance floor, and a stage that meets National Endowment for the Arts performance standards and accommodates a full symphony orchestra.
Ed Schmidt, president of the board of directors, said the gift from the Feldbergs highlights how important the arts are to Crested Butte. “The naming of the theater is an amazing gift to the whole community,” Ed said. “There are close to 300 individuals and families who have made this project possible, and this final gift builds on the generosity of the donors that preceded and ensures the success of the entire project.”
Upon completion, the contemporary arts facility of 28,000 square feet will include the new theater, new outdoor stage, four art studios, four performance studios, new visual arts gallery, a bar and demonstration kitchen for culinary classes and guest chef tastings and a professional catering kitchen. Nestled in the heart of Town Park, the Center’s design responds to the community’s unique culture and geography. Its distinctive roofs integrate the Center with the town’s historic neighborhoods of gabled houses and echoes the sharp silhouette of Mt. Crested Butte that towers over the Center. Phased construction will allow the Center for the Arts to keep its doors open throughout the construction project. For more information visit BuildingintheheARTs.org.
