In 1995, Muriel McBrien Kauffman, civic leader and philanthropist, discussed her vision for the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts with her family and the community. After her death, her daughter and chairman of the Muriel McBrien Kauffman Foundation, Julia Irene Kauffman, helped make this vision a reality.
Design Team Selected
In 1999, formal planning for the center began when the board began interviewing architects. Internationally renowned architect, Moshe Safdie, was selected, along with his partners for the project theater designer Richard Pilbrow and acoustician Yasu Toyota.
Property Purchased
A 13-acre property positioned between downtown and the Crossroads Arts District was chosen for its size, potential for becoming a “cultural campus” and the role it would play in revitalizing a downtown section of the city. After several phases of design and fund raising, the board agreed to break ground on October 6, 2006.
Construction Timeline
2007
January
- Mass excavation underway
- Wood construction walls built
- Holes dug for piers, footings and foundation
September
- Orchestra pit for Muriel McBrien Kauffman Theatre was excavated
- Footings poured
- Foundations for the flytower for equipment, sets, scrims, lighting and rigging laid
October
- Mechanical and plumbing equipment developed
- “South Wall” put into place to anchor steel embeds for structural cable system
December
- 10,000 cubic yards of concrete and two million pounds of rebar placed
- Underground work began in central plan to enable construction of foundations and floors
2008
- Walls began emerging on street level
- First elevation of walls placed for the Muriel McBrien Kauffman Theatre’s fly tower
- The construction of the critical anchor wall that supports the atrium glass structure is underway
2009
- Final steel trusses are installed and the building reaches its ultimate height
- Crews begin intricate interior work
- Last steel beam is signed and hoisted into place
2010
- Rehearsal and dressing rooms are complete
- Mechanical tunnel serving the Muriel McBrien Kauffman Theatre and Helzberg Hall nearly complete
- Ten thousand cubic yards of concrete and two million pounds of rebar placed
- Crews install more than 1,000 pieces of glass in the Brandmeyer Great Hall
- Scaffolding removed from the Muriel McBrien Kauffman Theatre and Helzberg Hall
