UMW Celebrates Groundbreaking for New Theatre at Intersection With Campus and Community

April 17, 2026

Amy Jessee

People stand in a line holding shovels — The University of Mary Washington broke ground this week on a new theatre at the corner of William Street and Sunken Road. K Pearlman Photography.

The groundwork has begun for a new theatre at the University of Mary Washington, as the campus community gathered on April 16, 2026, to celebrate with a groundbreaking ceremony. With construction set to begin this summer, following site preparation work this year, the idea of the building, or more accurately, the ideas that will thrive and come to life there, are already front and center.

“Today we aren’t just talking about a building. We are talking about an investment in creativity, collaboration and the hands-on learning that define a Mary Washington education,” said UMW Provost Tim O’Donnell. “This will be a teaching and learning laboratory designed to expand those opportunities with the space to create, experiment and grow.”

Fredericksburg Mayor Kerry Devine ’84, referenced the new theatre as a cultural beacon to downtown and a front door to the arts, noting how the work, energy and creativity of the facility will be visible to everyone who passes by on William Street.

“This theatre will be a landmark that defines our skyline by night and enriches our civic life by day,” she said.

UMW Board of Visitors Rector William Lee Murray ’04 commented on how the support for the project has developed, with all of the stewards in attendance at the ceremony, as well as the support and advocacy to move the project forward at the state level.

A man speaks at a podium — University of Mary Washington Director of the Arts Gregg Stull speaks at the groundbreaking ceremony for the new theatre to be built at the corner of William Street and Sunken Road. Photo by K Pearlman Photography.

A group of students dressed in red stands in front of a rendering of a new theatre building — University of Mary Washington students perform inside Dodd Auditorium as part of the groundbreaking event for UMW’s new theatre. Photo by K Pearlman Photography.

Authorized at $121 million from the state budget as of spring 2024, the construction project includes the new theatre building at the corner of William Street and Sunken Road, as well as renovations to the existing theatre spaces and adjacent studios, classrooms and facilities for art and music in duPont, Melchers and Pollard Halls.

The existing Klein Theatre in duPont Hall will be renovated to serve as a music recital and performance hall once the new theatre is complete in a few years. The new theatre will be of a similar scale, with 300 seats, including a 100-seat balcony, and the new facility will have a studio theatre of 150 seats, classrooms, a costume shop and study spaces housed together. As an academic building, it will serve as a cohesive practice space and stage for theatre students and faculty.

The location has been a cornerstone for the project too, as the new academic home for the Department of Theatre and Dance takes shape at the corner of William Street and Sunken Road.

“It essentially creates an intersection with the UMW campus and the Fredericksburg community,” said Murray.

A photo of two women talking to each other — University of Mary Washington Vice President for Advancement and Alumni Engagement, and UMW Foundation Executive Director Katie Turcotte chats with Fredericksburg Mayor Kerry Devine in Dodd Auditorium during the groundbreaking event for UMW’s new theatre. The building is designed to enhance the connection between the University and the City. Photo by K Pearlman Photography.

Two men shake hands onstage — University of Mary Washington Provost Tim O’Donnell turns the podium over to UMW Board of Visitors Rector Lee Murray onstage in Dodd Auditorium. The two spoke, along with Mary Washington President Troy Paino and Director of the Arts Gregg Stull, at the groundbreaking ceremony for UMW’s new theatre. Photo by K Pearlman Photography.

While the building will be the newest addition to the Fredericksburg campus that is now more than a century old, the commitment to the arts dates back as far as its first years as a state normal and industrial school and then a teachers college. Director of the School of the Arts Gregg Stull ’82 noted how the first performances filled the auditorium in Monroe Hall, the Heslep Amphitheatre, Dodd Auditorium and most recently Klein Theatre, where students are currently staging a production of Henry V.

UMW Theatre produces four shows each year, both plays and musicals, and is open to the public with students running all aspects of the shows from the marketing and box office to the scene shop and lighting. The art of performance and production shines through, and with the new theatre their work will also become more accessible. The new building will showcase costume and wig storage, as well as two dance studios.

“Generations of theatre students, faculty, staff, alumni, patrons, donors and leaders believed in this work and paved the way for this moment,” Stull said. “And hundreds of Mary Washington alumni are already making their mark in professional theatre work.”

Then following a dramatic pause in the ceremony, theatre students in attendance in Dodd Auditorium shared a moving musical performance, demonstrated a piece of the work that will have its home in the new academic building when it’s completed in a couple of years.

A photo of a man at a podium — University of Mary Washington President Troy Paino addresses the crowd in George Washington Hall’s Dodd Auditorium. Photo by K Pearlman Photography.

A close-up of several people sitting in an auditorium — Members of the UMW Board of Visitors listen to a series of speakers at the groundbreaking ceremony for the new UMW theatre. Photo by K Pearlman Photography.

“This is where people can see faculty, staff and students doing the work of theatre,” said UMW President Troy Paino. “The work that we do here is about community. And it’s about sending students out into the world to make a difference.”

That important work also garners national attention, as the powerful, applied learning experiences both applauded from the stage and applauded during the ceremony’s performance proved. UMW Theatre has been ranked for many years by The Princeton Review, currently listed 15th nationally among all colleges and universities.

For more information about UMW Theatre, including tickets to performances, visit the UMW Department of Theatre and Dance online. To see scenes from the new theatre construction, visit UMW Facilities’ construction website.

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