BY GAIL MATSUNAGA
From Dateline (October 14, 2004)

College of Arts Begins Campaign to Put Names on Seating in New Performing Arts Center Facilities

You don’t have to be heir to a fortune to be a “recognized” donor to the new performing arts center. A gift of $1,000 will put your name on one of the seats in the Vaughncille Joseph Meng Concert Hall or James D. Young Studio Theatre.

The 800-seat Meng Concert Hall, named in honor of the longtime Fullerton resident, is acoustically designed for music and will include such features as moveable canopies and draperies – all to accurately present the talents of orchestral, jazz and vocal performances. Regular and box seats will be on the hall’s lower and upper levels.

A thrust stage, which will give theatergoers a nearly theater-in-the-round experience, will highlight the Young Studio Theatre, named in honor of the emeritus professor and founding chair of theatre. The 250-seat space also will have balcony seating and will provide a more intimate theater experience for actors and audiences.

As construction continues, current and prospective donors have had a unique chance to see, first-hand, the new center’s progress. Led by Jerry Samuelson, dean of the College of the Arts, these hard-hat tours offer an informative, behind-the-scenes look at how the project is coming together.

“We are encouraged that so many people have expressed an interest in the opportunity of including their name on a seat in the Vaughncille Joseph Meng Concert Hall or the James Young Theatre,” says Samuelson. “Seat donations are helping us build this wonderful new performing arts center one seat at a time.”

Gifts toward a seat naming may be made as a one-time donation, or in installments. Faculty and staff members also may opt to make monthly payments through the It’s Our University campaign. For more information, call Milly Muzzy in University Advancement at 278-7695.