Then & Now

This installment of Then & Now brings us to a building close to Shields Library. Do you recognize this two story building located southeast of us? Originally named the Dramatic Art Building, it was completed in August 1966.

On October 9, 1997 the building was dedicated to Celeste Turner Wright, Professor of English at UC Davis. Professor Wright achieved many firsts during her time at Davis: she was the first woman with a Ph.D. to become a faculty member, the first woman to be tenured, the first drama instructor, and the first humanities professor to be honored as Faculty Research Lecturer.

Today, Wright Hall houses the Department of Theatre and Dance and the Performance Studies Graduate Group. The building contains the Main Theatre, which seats 470,  as well as the department’s costume shop, scene shops, prop room, and sound studio. The courtyard features Robert Arneson’s sculpture, Yin & Yang, from his 1991-1992 Egghead Series.

Can you spot the differences between the two photographs?