Over the years, Interlochen has made an art of the thrifty repurposing of existing spaces through creative renovation. Visitors are astonished, for example, to learn that the state-of-the-art Roscoe O. Bonisteel Library was once a gymnasium. A similar transformation will soon take place on the north end of the campus on the site of the former costume shop.
The costume shop vacated its previous location next to the Phoenix Theatre in 2006 when it moved into the spacious Mallory Costume Shop in the Harvey Theatre Complex. Its former site has remained empty since then and is not suitable for most uses - but that will soon change.
Within weeks, work will begin on a one million dollar project that will transform the empty space into a new conference center, the Mallory-Towsley Center for Arts Leadership. The completely remodeled 8,000 square-foot facility will feature easily accessible classrooms and a large conference room that can also be reconfigured into smaller rooms with moveable-wall partitions. Outside, the building’s façade will be designed to blend in with other recent campus improvements.
The renovation is a long-awaited one for the College of Creative Arts. Because Camp activities fill most facilities to capacity through the summer, space for adult programming in the summer months has been scarce. “Many camp parents, grandparents and alumni have asked about classes in the summer,” noted Matt Wiliford, director of the College of Creative Arts. “Unfortunately, because of space limitations we could only offer a small number of summer classes. This building will help us open up so many more opportunities for adult arts education and enrichment.”
