A 1983 University of Vermont graduate has given the school $1 million to kickstart a $4 million renovation of Royall Tyler Theatre.

The anonymous gift will help fund a redesign of the lobby's layout and lighting along with renovations of bathrooms and other first floor spaces outside the main theater. Plans also include installing a new elevator and upgrading the building's classrooms, dressing rooms and rehearsal areas.

“This is a really important leading gift that will help make this a better place to work, a better place to make art, and a better place to teach and study,” Theatre and Dance Program head Rob Shimko said in a press release announcing the donation. “It's a value statement that says that the arts matter on this campus.”



The gift, School of the Arts executive director Kelley Di Dio added, "is absolutely crucial for getting this much-needed work started."

Royall Tyler Theatre, which celebrated its 50th anniversary in March, was constructed as a gymnasium in 1901. It was renovated in 1973 and 1974 to house UVM's theater department and dedicated to Royall Tyler (1757-1826), the 13th chief justice of the Vermont Supreme Court and author of America’s first comedy play. The facility includes a 291-seat theater, a green room, costume and scene shops, classrooms, and offices for faculty and staff.

Aside from renovations to the performance space a decade ago, no interior updates have been made since 1974. In the last 10 years, the university has replaced the roof and renovated the plaza in front.

The planned upgrades will make the building more accessible and create a more flexible lobby to serve students and to host performances, public events and gatherings.
UVM's Theatre and Dance program offers bachelor of arts degrees in theater and dance, as well as minors in theater, musical theater and dance. Royall Tyler's aging infrastructure has not curtailed the university's ability to stage performances, Di Dio said. Its 2024-25 season opener, Mickle Maher's surrealist comedy Spirits to Enforce, runs through Sunday, October 6.

The anonymous donor has shown continued support for the arts at UVM. Their past gifts have helped fund the renovation of Michele and Martin Cohen Hall for the Integrative Creative Arts and the redesign of Francis Colburn Gallery, an art gallery in Williams Hall.

Scott + Partners Architecture of Essex Junction is overseeing the Royall Tyler Theatre project. Work is expected to begin in May, and fundraising continues.