The Palo Alto Board of Education and Palo Alto High School theater subcommittee’s conflicting visions for the seating count in the to-be-built performing arts center will require Paly to choose an alternative building plan.
“Not everyone is going to be satisfied, but we have to learn to work together,” Principal Phil Winston said.
After meeting with members of the visual and performing arts subcommittee and Supt. Kevin Skelly on Sept. 30, Winston said that Skelly and the committee members had a “chance to exchange some thoughts and different perspectives.”
At the meeting, members confirmed that the most recent design, consisting of 475 seats — which the school committees had agreed to be the ideal number — would not be the final project schematic. Rather, the final design will consist of seats between 575 — the number that the boards suggested — and 475. The final seat count has yet to be compromised; however, that the number will mostly likely be around 540, according to Winston.
The theater subcommittee will choose a design with the appropriate number of seating so that it will be ideal for both performing arts and for class meetings, such as large assemblies, according to Winston.
Winston stressed the impossibility of making everyone happy and emphasized the importance of everyone working together.
“This is a perfect example of when everyone can work together,” Winston said.
Finding an alternative plan will not take much effort because the subcommittee already has a number of options, previously designed by architect Erwin Lee. Some of these alternate plans include a building without a balcony or second story and other “creative options”, according to Winston.
Winston said that the committee will find a plan that will maintain the integrity of the program and include all options needed for the project to be a true performing arts center.
Visual and Performing Arts Instructional Supervisor Michael Najar expressed positive thoughts concerning the collaboration.
“Everyone — the visual and performing arts department, the district, the staff — is going to be really excited about this new theater,” Najar said. “We think this plan that we are working on will address the campus needs while also being a spectacular performing arts building.”
The decision-making process for the PAC is not behind schedule, according to Winston.
Editor’s note: In a recent interview, Najar clarified that his quote “I don’t want something in the middle…it just looks tacky” from a previous story on the PAC was misinterpreted, making it sound like he was calling the building tacky when really he was referring to the idea of hanging a drape from the balcony to cover the additional seating.