Explore the Bicknell Family Center for the Arts

This beautiful lobby is the backbone of the Bicknell Center, providing access and connectivity to the performance venues and art gallery. Its most prominent features include the curved wall of glass panels and the large skylight, providing patrons with a relaxing and open space in which to enjoy the arts.

• More than 210 panes of glass line the curved wall, allowing natural sunlight to illuminate the lobby by day and providing a breathtaking view of campus by night.

• Installed above each windowpane is an environmental shade. Made possible by a gift from the Ronald O. Thomas Foundation, these shades automatically adjust depending upon the time of day and intensity of sunlight.

• As you pass through the lobby be sure to gaze upward at the Alan G. and Roberta Harlow Whetzel Skylight. Its beautiful design allows light to cascade down the exterior wall of the performance hall, highlighting the natural grain of the Aligre wood.

• The Bergant Family Lobby can also be used as a reception and performance setting. The Mitchelson Family Performance Alcove, located to the west of the Art Gallery’s main entrance, provides the perfect setting for a small performance group to entertain up to 700 visitors in both the lobby and the James S. and Treva J. Dawson second floor lobby.

The gallery’s high ceilings, flexible lighting grid and nearly 3,500 square-feet of display and work space will provide incredible new opportunities for artists and patrons alike. The additional space will provide the perfect setting for special exhibitions that were never before possible. This gallery also includes work space for an artist-in-residence and the flexibility to showcase multiple exhibitions at once. Take a look at the current and previous exhibits.

This room provides insight into the life and times of the Bicknell Center’s lead donor and local businessman, Gene Bicknell. His inspirational story of overcoming poverty to build and lead one of the region’s largest corporations is visually told through a collection of historic memorabilia and personal reflections.

You’ll be moved by the historic displays which provide insight into his core values as an entrepreneur, a philanthropist and a civic leader.

Encompassing more than 10,000 square-feet, this 1,100 seat performance hall is the heart of the Bicknell Center. Everything about it has been constructed with the audience and performer in mind.

• The performance hall was designed by world renowned architects with years of experience. Architectural consultants with expertise in theater, acoustics, mechanical, and performance design were called upon to ensure that patrons and performers experience the very best.
• Each and every curve and angle within the Linda & Lee Scott Performance Hall was constructed with a purpose in mind. This hall features "tunable" walls that can be adjusted to provide the perfect acoustics for any performance. Be it symphonic, lecture, theater or rock concert, you can rest assured that you’ll be hearing the very best the artist has to offer.
• The ribbon cutting event featured the use of our custom-made orchestral shell. Constructed from exotic Anigre wood, this beautiful shell stands 28 feet tall and helps enhance and direct sound throughout the performance hall. Its unique design produces a warm sound that envelops performer and patron alike. It is movable and can easily be stored allowing use of the full stage.
• Just as important for any performance is lighting, and with more than 400 lighting connections, the Linda & Lee Scott Performance Hall will deliver. As you tour the room, be sure to look for the theatrical fly system, adjustable orchestra pit, movable walls, large stage area and intimate seating design.
• One thing you won’t notice is duct work. The Linda & Lee Scott Performance Hall has been designed to reduce noise wherever possible, and this includes its heating and cooling system. Air passages have purposefully been left open under the seating areas and a special low-flow air handling system has been installed to ensure the comfort of the audience without sacrificing the acoustics of the performance hall.

This 250-seat theater provides the university with its first dedicated theater space since 1978. Encompassing just under 4,500 square-feet, this theater has been designed by award-winning architects to provide artists with an intimate and engaging environment in which to perform.

More than 200 lighting connections are in place to ensure a perfect lighting plot, and a state-of-the-art sound system will help bring the action on the stage to life.

No detail was too small for architects. As you tour the theater, take note of the step down seating which provides a great view for every seat in the house. The height of the balcony has purposefully been set low to ensure those sitting in these seats feel as much a part of the action as those on the main floor. Speaking of seating, you'll notice no seat has been permanently affixed to the floor, allowing the audience positioning to be as unique as the program.

Amazing theater is a combination of great performances, insightful direction and amazing sets that draw you into the action. In a sense, the scene shop is where the magic begins because it’s where the sets are made.

Pittsburg State’s scene shop has been designed specifically for the theater. Its features include built-in compressed air, electrical wiring capable of handling the demands of the theater and modern tools.

The location of the scene shop is no accident. It has been placed between the Dotty and Bill Miller Theater and the Linda & Lee Scott Performance Hall in order to allow carpenters easy access to either stage. The large doors at the back and front of the scene shop provide ample room for sets of all sizes to make the journey.  

The origins of the phrase “green room” have been lost to history, but its function as a place of rest and preparation for performers has remained the same for hundreds of years. The Dr. Peter K. Hamilton Green Room will host small groups and individual lecturers who entertain in the Dotty and Bill Miller Theater, with the amenities of both a kitchen and a living room.

The Hamilton Green Room provides the perfect respite for performers before, during and after a performance.

Larger and more flexible than the Hamilton Green Room, the Gordon W. and Bev Elliott Green Room is designed to meet the needs of larger performance troupes and musicians.  

The Elliott Green Room provides performers with a relaxing backstage area to prepare for their time on stage, catch their breath in-between performances or to simply rest after an exciting performance.

The Elliott Green Room is strategically located adjacent to a large assembly area to allow backstage operations to flow smoothly. Members in the assembly area will have access to both the Elliott Green Room and main stage area, reducing noise and congestion in the backstage area.

In many performances, the apparel worn by the actors is as much a character as the performers themselves. The creation of these costumes takes place in the room you see here. Sewing machines, fabric and creativity come together in the costume shop to create everything from a Victorian period dress to full-sized jungle animals. Whatever the performance calls for, the professionals in the costume shop help bring it to life for the audience.

The Bicknell Center houses six separate dressing rooms. As you walk through these dressing rooms, pay special attention to the differences evident in each. The "Star's" rooms are designed for individual or small groups and include large mirrors and professional grade lighting. The "Chorus" and "Casting" rooms can hold groups of up to 20 and house multiple showers and restroom facilities so that nothing will slow down the performers before they take the stage.

• Tom and Jane Collinson Dressing Room (Star’s)

• George and Billie Pitzer Dressing Room (Star’s)

• Russell L. Jones Dressing Room (Chorus)

• Ida Spradling Locarni Dressing Room (Chorus)

• Ron’s Supermarket/The Rhodes Family Dressing Room (Casting)

• Dr. Don and Mrs. Betty Hight Dressing Room (Casting)

Located adjacent to the James S. and Treva J. Dawson Lobby, this room is much more than meets the eye. Its location makes it the perfect space for pre-event receptions and artist lectures. Its layout also allows it to house small performance groups and be used as a classroom for master classes from visiting artists. It’s this type of flexibility that makes the Bicknell Center such a special addition to our campus and our community.

At nearly 3,000 square-feet of space, this area has the capability of being used for a variety of purposes. Unfinished at this time, this room will be able to serve as a practice facility for musicians, a reception area or as a classroom.

There isn’t an inch of space at the Bicknell Center that has not been designed with the arts in mind, including the Garden Courtyard. This exterior space is adjacent to the glassed-in hallway, which makes it the perfect location for future receptions and a garden sanctuary between events for a our guests to enjoy.