The first area that you will enter when heading into the Colwell Playhouse is the sublobby.  The Krannerts wanted a main lobby for patrons from different shows to mingle but they also wanted spaces in the large theaters where patrons could stay if they did not want to mingle among members of other audiences. Each of the sublobbies to the larger theaters therefore has its own set of restrooms and water fountains. In the case of the Playhouse, both of these things are located downstairs. The sublobbies are also used for meetings and receptions throughout the year. In the playhouse sublobby, there are two sculptures. One is "Dedication to Grace". This sculpture was done by Anne P. Copperthwaite and depending on a persons height if they stand a few feet in front of it and talk, they will hear their own voice echo. The other sculpture was made by Harry Breene and is dedicated to Joseph W. Scott who was a Professor of the Department of Speech, the Supervisor of Dramatic Productions, and the Director of Lincoln Hall Theater when the Krannert Center was designed. This sculpture depicts various creatures of Asian mythology. The walls in all of the sublobbies are made of birch strips lined with fiberglass. This is done to keep the sound from reflecting back into the main lobby when there are many patrons in the sublobby. You will also notice the red color of the carpet. The color schemes in each of the sublobbies are carried into the theaters.

     The Department of Theater holds a number of shows here each year and the Department of Dance also uses this theater for a few shows each year. This theater can be used for operas but those are mainly held in the Festival Theater.

     The seats share the same color of red as the carpeting in the sublobby. The walls are black in this theater to create a dramatic mood. The Colwell Playhouse is designed for dramatic productions or plays. One of the main factors that has to do with this fact is that the acoustics are designed for speech. The walls are curved and shaped so that voices from the stage will always be projected out toward the audience. One important aspect of theater however is that you do not want voices to echo. You simply want an actor to speak his part and then move on. To keep voices from echoing back and forth in this room, the back wall of this theater is covered with a thin layer of fabric. This helps to absorb the sound once it reaches the back of the theater.

    This theater seats 670-700 people depending on the positioning and use of two screw lifts on the front of the stage. These lifts can be raised to increase the size of the stage, set to house level to add seats, lowered below house level to create an orchestra pit, or set at any level in-between to create special effects with set pieces and staging. There is also no center aisle in this theater. This is known as Continental seating. The Krannerts thought that the center aisle in most theaters is where the best seats in the house would be so they actually put seats there. To accommodate for that, there is extra room in-between the rows so that patrons can still get to their seats in the middle of the theater relatively easily.

   The stage in the Playhouse is large enough to fit a full size set on stage, and other ones on stage left, stage right, and back stage. There is also 92' of fly space in this theater above the stage to hang curtains, lights, backdrops, set pieces, etc. The proscenium arch is 38' wide by 22' high and the stage itself is 30' deep. There is also a special curtain behind the proscenium arch known as the asbestos curtain. This curtain is not actually made out of asbestos although at one point it would have been. This is a special fire retardant curtain. If for some reason a fire started on stage, the stage manager could grab a knife hanging backstage and cut a rope to drop this curtain. The fire would then remain on the stage and the audience would be safe. If for some reason the stage manager was injured, the ropes holding this curtain up are made of wax and once the fire burned hot enough the ropes would melt through and the curtain would drop automatically. This curtain could also be used to keep a fire that started in the house from getting back stage.

     When the Krannert Center was originally designed in the 1960s, there was no Americans for Disabilities Act but the Krannerts thought that everyone should have equal access to the performing arts and they therefore designed the Center in such a manner. There are two wheelchair accessible balconies in the Playhouse- one on each side of the theater- that can be reached from Level 5. Limited numbers of Braille and large print programs are also printed for most shows and sign language interpreters can be provided with 3 weeks advance notice. There is also a special system that can be utilized by patrons who are hard of hearing- the Sennheiser Audio System. During performances, microphones are hung above the stage. The microphones will pick up the actors voices. The system then translates the sound to infrared light. There are special headsets that patrons can check out from the patron services desk. The infrared light gets sent out into the audience via panels on the top corners of the proscenium arch. The headsets receive this light and translate it back into sound. If someone is hard of hearing and is sitting in the back row of the theater, it can sound to them just as if they are sitting on the stage next to the actor speaking.

Seating in the Colwell Playhouse as seen from on stage

   "Dedication to Grace"    

  "Joseph Scott Memorial"

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