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Alum named director of new Center for the Arts
3:07 p.m., July 17, 2006--When alumnus Patrick Donnelly takes over as director of UD's new Center for the Arts this summer, it will be a homecoming on a couple of different levels for the Delaware native. Donnelly will begin his new position on July 31, Barbara Kreppel, associate vice president of administrative services, said. “Patrick brings an excellent mix of production knowledge and management experience that perfectly suits the needs for the Center for the Arts,” she said. Donnelly, who graduated from UD in 1993 with a bachelor of arts degree with distinction in history education and Spanish, was born and raised in Wilmington. He received a master of arts management degree from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. “This is really an opportunity to come home,” Donnelly said. “I know the campus and the community, and I like and esteem them both.” After having served as director of audience services in the Department of Theatre at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, Donnelly's duties at UD will include managing general building operations for the Center for the Arts, plus staffing, scheduling and setting up for events to be held in the center, as well as Mitchell and Pearson hall auditoriums.
Donnelly said he was impressed with the many new technological and aesthetic features that comprise the $42 million Center for the Arts, including the 450-seat proscenium theatre, the 200-seat recital hall and an orchestral recital hall capable of accommodating the 350-member UD Marching Band for indoor practice sessions. “The Center for the Arts is beautiful in concept and execution, and it will be a great supplement to the facilities that already exist on campus,” Donnelly said. “I would like to augment what is already available on campus, and to help the music and theatre departments do things that they have not been able to do before.” A former performance events supervisor at UD, where he managed the daily operations of Mitchell and Pearson halls, Donnelly said his choice of a career in performing arts management began almost by accident. “I did some backstage work when I was attending Wilmington High School and also at UD,” Donnelly said. “This led to volunteer work, which in turn led to part-time and eventually full-time employment.” Before going to Western Michigan University in 2003, Donnelly served as performance hall manager at Central Michigan University, in Mount Pleasant, Mich. He also served as production services manager at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque. In addition, Donnelly has served as an adjunct instructor of performing arts administration in the College of Fine Arts and a staff instructor of arts management in the Department of Theatre, both at Western Michigan University. Article by Jerry Rhodes
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