About the Lenfest Center

The Lenfest Center for the Arts, home of the Department of Theater, Dance and Film Studies, and the Department of Music, and the Department of Art and Art History, is a multi-use facility designed and equipped to accommodate a broad spectrum of the performing arts, including theater, musical theater, opera and operetta, choral and band music, dance and performance art in one energizing complex.

The original building, now known as Gerry and Marguerite Lenfest Hall, features two theaters, the Keller Theatre and the Johnson Theatre, and also houses teaching classrooms, faculty offices, and theatrical support facilities such as the scene shop, the costume shop and modest storage.

John and Anne Wilson Hall, named for former Washington and Lee president John D. Wilson and his wife Anne, is the most recent gem in the University’s crown of the arts. Housing the departments of Music and Art, Wilson Hall also contains a 300-seat state of the art Concert Hall which plays host not only to the University’s many student, faculty, and ensemble groups, but also world renowned concert artists. The Staniar Art Gallery is also an excellent venue for the works of student, faculty and professional artists.

H.F. (Gerry) and Marguerite Lenfest of Huntington Valley, Pennsylvania were the principal patrons of the facility. Mr. Lenfest was a 1953 graduate of Washington and Lee.

Lenfest Hall Venues

Stan Kamen Gallery

The Stan Kamen Gallery is located in the lobby of the Lenfest Center for the Arts and serves as a reception area. The gallery features a collection of art on theme the American West that was bequeathed in 1986 by alumnus Stan Kamen '49 LL.B. Special temporary exhibitions are occasionally mounted here.

Hours: Monday -Friday, 9am -5pm during the academic year; for events/performances in Lenfest Center for the Arts
Contact: 458-8007 (Susan Wager)

Keller Theatre, Lenfest Hall

The Keller Theatre is a 415-seat proscenium theatre. The proscenium opening is 40' wide by 24' tall. The stage area behind the curtain is 30' deep by 77' wide. Equipped with state-of-the-art sound and lighting, full fly tower with slip weight counterweight rigging, trapped stage floor, and an orchestra pit elevator, the Keller boasts an impressive stage house capable of handling most performances.

 



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Johnson Theatre, Lenfest Hall

The Johnson Theatre is a 170-seat black box theatre. The proscenium opening is 40' wide by 24' tall. The stage area is 50' deep by 58' wide. Equipped with audience seating that can be set up in multiple configurations providing students the opportunity to work in arena, alley, thrust, and other dynamic set ups.

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Dance Studio

The dance studio is located at 109 South Jefferson Street, the former print shop for the Lexington News-Gazette. Dance continues to grow at W&L, and now includes a dance minor. It has won prestigious awards for "outstanding creative works" from the American College Dance Festival and has received national attention for its work in aerial dance. The building's structure has enabled it to be rigged for aerial dance, making silk ropes, harnesses and bungees available to the dancers at any time. A special sprung floor has been installed to make it safer for dancers to move on and jump repetitively without being hurt. Double-sided mirrors can be used to split the room in half so that two dance classes can be held at the same time.

Costume Shop

The Costume Shop is located in the basement of the Lenfest Center directly across the hall from the dressing rooms. It is fully equipped for alterations and full construction in sewing and costume crafts. The Department of Theater buys, rents, builds and utilizes stock items from their collection to satisfy the needs of productions.

Dressing Rooms

The theaters are serviced by two large choral dressing rooms each capable of holding 15 people. The dressing rooms are equipped with bathrooms and showers.

Scene Shop

The Scene Shop is the laboratory classroom for the technical production courses the department offers. Scenery and properties for all the department shows are built and painted here. The shop is well equipped with tools for working in wood, metal, plastics, foam, and is outfitted to allow for the safe and efficient construction of scenery.  The scene shop is directly connected to both the Keller and Johnson Theatres.

Maslansky Rehearsal Hall

The Maslansky Studio is located in the basement and serves as the laboratory classroom for the acting and performance classes. The studio is equipped with its own LED lighting system and large green-screen wall for film and video projects.

Wilson Hall Venues

Wilson Concert Hall

Wilson Hall contains a 300 seat, state-of-the-art Concert Hall which plays host not only to the University's many student, faculty, and ensemble groups, but also world renowned concert artists.

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Staniar Gallery

The Staniar Art Gallery is a beautiful new site in Wilson Hall and an excellent venue for the works of student, faculty and professional artists.

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