Regardless of sales tax vote outcome, Music Theatre Wichita is making this move

Whatever the outcome of Tuesday’s sales tax vote, part of which is to fund a new performing arts center, Music Theatre Wichita is campaigning for money to make a move.

The nonprofit has purchased a former school at 640 N. Emporia where it plans to move its offices and educational classes.

“We are in the quiet phase of the campaign,” said managing director Angela Cassette.

If Tuesday’s vote passes, $75 million of the $850 million it would raise over seven years would go to a new performing arts center where various arts organizations, including Music Theatre, would perform instead of using Century II as they now do.

It’s expected that another $75 million in private funds, through a different fundraising campaign, would have to match city dollars for the new performing arts center.

“These conversations are happening in parallel, but they are completely separate issues,” Cassette said.

In addition to its professional productions, Cassette said Music Theatre has what’s called the Academy at Music Theatre Wichita through which it offers a variety of classes for students of all ages, including those who have never performed in public and some who are on a possible professional path.

“This is a very serious theater town,” Cassette said. “We’ve had a lot of growth in our educational programs.”

In 2021, it acquired Music Theatre For Young People, “so we do programming that carries on that tradition.”

Classes currently are held in a variety of places.

With the new space on North Emporia, she said, “This will consolidate it all and put it in one spot.”

That likely won’t happen for at least a couple of years as the nonprofit raises money and extensively renovates the 1916 building.

The almost 30,000-square-foot building started as Webster Elementary and most recently was Gateway Alternative and Metro-Midtown before that.

“It’s had a lot of lives,” Cassette said.

Music Theatre currently has its offices in Century II, but Cassette said there hasn’t been enough room for some time. She said it’s also nontraditional with peer organizations to have rented office space within a performance facility.

Cassette is planning a formal announcement of the campaign for April 23 and will share more details then.

There happens to be quite a bit of vacant land near the school, but apparently that’s merely coincidental, and it is not one of the sites anyone is considering for a possible new performing arts center.

As Cassette said via text following a phone interview:

“I can honestly say no one has raised that as a possibility!”