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SPAC Plans $12 Million Theater Renovation

Written by Saratoga TODAY on . Posted in Featured, News.


Renderings of a renovated Spa Little Theater via Phinney Design / the Saratoga Performing Arts Center.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — The Saratoga Performing Arts Center announced last week a $17.5 million fundraising campaign—the largest fundraising effort in SPAC history—in anticipation of its upcoming 60th anniversary next year. The capital campaign would allow SPAC to renovate its historic Spa Little Theater to the tune of $12 million.

“Launching our Four Seasons Campaign is an exciting next step that will bring us into the future, raising funds to completely renovate and restore Spa Little Theater for the first time in its 100-year history and supporting our year-round artistic and educational programming for years to come,” said Elizabeth Sobol, SPAC’s chief executive officer, at the organization’s annual meeting.

As part of the quiet phase of the campaign, which launched in 2024, Stewart’s Shops/the Dake Family gave the lead gift of $1 million to support these initiatives. 

“In 1966, members of the Saratoga community came together to build SPAC. Sixty years later, we are asking the Saratoga community to help ensure that all we have created here together endures well into the future,” said Susan Law Dake, a SPAC board member and Four Seasons Campaign chair.

The theater renovation would be the first time that the 500-seat venue has undergone a major facelift since it was built in 1935. The redesign will be “fresh and accessible” while maintaining the venue’s “acoustic and historic integrity,” SPAC said.

Christopher Shiley, president of SPAC, said that since taking over operations of the Spa Little Theater in 2022, SPAC has presented more than 100 events at the venue, welcomed more than 35,000 guests, and expanded the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s season to a year-round residency. The theater has also been used as an event space for cultural, community, and corporate partners.

The project will include 17,125 square feet of interior and exterior renovations, including: 

  • a new floor plan and accessibility measures;
  • theater upgrades (including updated seats);
  • increased ADA seating;
  • a new stage floor;
  • an environmentally-efficient HVAC system;
  • a new lobby layout with an increased number of renovated and accessible restrooms;
  • an updated box office;
  • a new bar/café;
  • a multipurpose community room with an adjacent outdoor patio; 
  • a new artist suite and dressing rooms.

The project has been awarded a $2.2 million capital grant from Empire State Development through the Regional Council initiative, and $2 million pursuant to the most recently enacted New York State budget thanks to Governor Kathy Hochul, New York State Parks, and the New York State Legislature. Additional funding has been provided by the SPAC board and other private donors and family foundations.

A groundbreaking is slated for September 2025, with a reopening planned for late fall of 2026 to celebrate the conclusion of the 60th anniversary season.

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