Century II Performing Arts & Convention Center
| Century II Performing Arts & Convention Center | |
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| Address | 225 W. Douglas Avenue |
| Location | Wichita, Kansas |
| Coordinates | 37°41′06″N 97°20′25″W / 37.684876°N 97.340283°WCoordinates: 37°41′06″N 97°20′25″W / 37.684876°N 97.340283°W |
| Owner | City of Wichita |
| Operator | City of Wichita |
| Opened | 1969 |
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Theatre seating
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Concert Hall: 2,195 Mary Jane Teall Theater: 652 |
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| Website | |
| century2 |
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Century II Performing Arts & Convention Center is a performing arts and convention center located at 225 West Douglas Avenue in Wichita, Kansas, United States. It is the largest center for entertainment, consumer shows and meetings in Wichita and is home to four arts organizations - Wichita Symphony Orchestra, Wichita Grand Opera, Music Theatre Wichita, and Music Theatre for Young People.
The facility boasts almost 200,000 sq ft (19,000 m2) of contiguous exhibit space, 20 meeting rooms, a Concert Hall that seats 2,197 people in continental seating, the Mary Jane Teall Theatre that seats 650 people in continental seating, and Convention Hall that seats 4,700 people.
The Performing Arts and Convention Center is also well-known of holding Miss USA Pageant from 1990 to 1993 and Miss Teen USA 1995.
The facility was designed by John Hickman and opened January 11, 1969 to commemorate the centennial anniversary of Wichita's incorporation in 1870. It was constructed on the site of The Forum, a convention center and exposition hall that opened in 1911. By the 1960s, The Forum was showing its age and did not have adequate facilities that performances or shows required.
The 1926 Wurlitzer organ from the Paramount Theatre (New York City) was removed prior to that theater's demolition and installed in the Century II Convention Hall. Prior to the demolition of the Paramount Theatre, the organ was acquired by Richard Simonton of Los Angeles. In the 1970s, the organ was moved to the Century II Convention Center in Wichita, Kansas. The organ continues to be used today for concerts and other events.
The building is a low circular structure with a shallow domed roof in the style of Frank Lloyd Wright. A similar structure is the Marin County Civic Center in California. John Hickman was an apprentice of Wright's at Taliesen West in the late 1940s. A quote from the daughter of the architect, Susan Hickman, says that her father felt that the inspiration for the building was the vast fields of wheat (represented by the sand-colored pillars) and the limitless sky (by the pale blue-colored dome). The lobby encircles the main level with convention hall, exhibition hall and concert hall occupying wedge-shaped areas within the ring. The stages of the three spaces abut in the building's center.
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