McCelvey Center

The McCelvey Center auditorium trusses are strong, all the scaffolding is gone, and the “house” is looking great with a fresh coat of paint. Now, we’re working on some non-structural items like stage lighting, audio/visual, curtains, carpets, fire alarms, and HVAC repairs to get the auditorium put back together and ready to host performances again. 2026 looks to be another busy year at the McCelvey!

All Culture & Heritage Museums sites will be closed Jan. 1 for New Years! 🎊 See you on Jan. 2! 🎆

We have reached an important milestone in the McCelvey Center auditorium stabilization. The broken truss over the stage has been successfully lifted and repaired. A lot of complex engineering by Bennett Preservation Engineering, hard work by Midwest Maintenance Inc., and steel have gone into saving the auditorium from likely collapse due to the failure of the trusses. While there is still work to be done to get the auditorium ready for performances again, we are relieved to have the most challenging part of the project behind us.

The first photo shows the truss after stabilization with the second showing the truss prior to work. The truss had been severely overstressed due to its design, resulting in a break at the center which pulled the roof down and pushed the exterior walls out. Now, the truss has been lifted and the walls have been pulled back in. The century-old wooden truss has been left in place but reinforced with additional wood, multiple steel plates at connection points, and 2” diameter tension rods that run along its 60’ length. The work that has been done will allow the auditorium to continue standing into the next century.