Why 850 and 300 seats?

Commentary by Tim Yerxa, Executive Director, Fredericton Playhouse Inc.

You probably know at this point that the new Performing Arts Centre will contain not one but TWO theatres. This is very exciting for us because we’ll be able to double our offerings and also attract and host shows and performers that we haven’t been able to in the Playhouse.

But you might be wondering – why only 850 seats in the large theatre?

Well, a great deal of study went into determining the best seat count for our Main Hall, which will be replacing the current 709-seat Playhouse theatre. Too few seats would prevent the Performing Arts Centre from attracting large-scale commercial shows like Broadway, popular music and stand-up comedy, while too many would place the venue in a category that is not aligned with similar venues in the Maritimes and therefore prevent Fredericton from participating in regional tours.

850 seats is the “sweet spot”, making it the largest of the three major venues in New Brunswick, but keeping it in the same “category” as the Capitol Theatre in Moncton and the Imperial Theatre in Saint John. This was critical to the decision on the seat count.

The main hall can also be configured to reduce the seat count to ~500 seats by closing the balcony, making it ideal for many local and touring productions that would sell more than the second 300- seat theatre, but fewer than 850. Several events that use the current Playhouse find it too large, yet we are passed by when touring shows choose to play a limited number of venues in the region and therefore choose the venues with the highest seat count.

So, we feel confident that 850 is the perfect number.

We also feel that offering a 300-seat theatre that has a flexible layout is also exactly what our region needs.

The New Brunswick performing arts community has grown and blossomed over the past 60 years, and the growth in the music scene is equally impressive. Of all the groups who have been calling for a new performing arts facility, it is the local performers and cultural groups – both in Fredericton and in the more rural communities all along the river valleys - who have been dreaming of a new facility that will allow local talent to perform before right-sized audiences. The Theatre, the smaller of the two main theatres in the new Performing Arts Centre, is being designed with the local arts community in mind.

In its typical format, the Theatre will seat about 300, but it is also designed for a multiplicity of artistic disciplines and formats, including having a flat floor space for cabaret tables or other creative audience placements. Its smaller capacity makes it ideal for local and touring productions and provides the affordable high-quality space that local artists and groups have been yearning for. As well, the storytelling that will happen in this space will most certainly provide an opportunity for people to explore and better understand who they are in the world and their place in history.

The staff and Board of Directors of Fredericton Playhouse Inc. have spent years talking with users and visiting other Performing Arts Centres around the world to make sure that we get our new facility just right. I’m happy to say I think we’ve done that in our final designs.