<ir="ltr">Experimental Theater Board (ETB) is finalizing a Student Projects Committee proposal for a $20,000-$25,000 renovation of Little Nourse Theater, according to ETB board members Julia Connolly ’18 and Kate Faber ’18. The renovations will include a revamping of the lighting system, shelves, a backstage sink and electrical rewiring.
ETB will officially submit its proposal to CSA Senate in the next couple of weeks. In response, CSA Senate will vote on the proposal. If CSA Senate passes the proposal, a campus-wide vote will be conducted 7th weekend. A simple majority in favor of the renovations is needed for project approval. CSA Senate changed the voting threshold since last year’s controversial basketball court project proposal when only one-sixth of the student body needed to vote in favor of the project to get it passed.
To mitigate the inconveniences associated with the renovation, most work would happen over the summer and would be coordinated by Maintenance Services, according to Faber. Other smaller changes, like backstage reorganization, would happen next winter term as both Connolly and Faber will be abroad during fall term.
Connolly explained that ETB created the project after Ben Strauss ’16, a member of the Student Projects Committee, approached ETB to see if it would be interested in submitting a project.
“Nourse does not have its own source of funding, so the Student Projects Committee gives us the opportunity to make improvements that go above and beyond what Maintenance currently does,” Faber explained.
However, some of the funding for renovations would come from family and alumni gifts, according to Connolly. During winter term, ETB put together a quick proposal, but decided to delay submission in order to get more community feedback. Connolly and Faber have hosted two meetings with the ETB board to brainstorm priorities for the renovation. Last Thursday, they also led a public meeting to get more feedback.
“We are really trying to seek and incorporate community feedback,” Faber said. “We have been trying to reach out to people at Carleton who know about theater, to ResLife because Little Nourse is in a dorm, and also to students who come to events in the theater.”
Based on the feedback ETB received, Faber and Connolly could foresee the Little Nourse renovation turning into a phased project.
“We’re starting with a better lighting system and organization, but there are other aspects of Nourse that could be better,” according to Faber. “For instance, it would be cool to hire a theater consultant to look at how we can improve sightlines from the audience,” she said.
In the end, Faber and Connolly emphasized how excited they and ETB are about the project. “Although everyone loves the gritty run-down vibe of Nourse, it could be better without losing its charm,” Faber said.
