2008 Woodie Awards
Harrison Theatre receives donation and name change
Lydia Hignite
Issue date: 9/26/07 Section: News
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Bonnie Bolding Swearingen, a 1955 Samford theatre graduate, and her late husband, John E. Swearingen, made a donation to the theatre department last year. To show gratitude, Samford held a dedication ceremony last October where Harrison Theatre was renamed Bonnie Bolding Swearingen Hall.
"The lobby of Harrison Theatre was renovated and given a new frontage so that as patrons came in they could see something that was more reflective of the performances inside instead of a sort of dilapidated 1970s set up that had been there for 30 years," Associate Professor of the Theatre Department Mark Castle said.
The money was donated specifically to renovate the theatre building and to make the School of the Performing Arts a more effective place.
"Our new lobby is better because it's prettier, and the box office is more accessible. It's easier for our box office workers to communicate with our audience," junior theatre and music double major Emily Hoppe said.
A small studio in Swearingen Hall has also been updated with a new stage floor, curtains and lighting. During the dedication ceremony, this room was renamed Bonnie Bolding Swearingen Studio.
The studio is intended for smaller performances where the audience and performers alike can experience "a more intimate setting," Hoppe said. The musical ensemble "The World Goes Round," performed by Samford students a on Sept. 14 and 15 was the first performance held in the studio.
Patrons of the production were able to see and hear the performers more clearly because of the studio's compact size.
"In order to design a name for itself as a performing arts school, as an arts department in general, the money is very important because it allows us to create things, to express ourselves as a department or as individuals," musical theatre major Katie Ostrowski said. "We cannot be artists unless we have something to create with."
Ostrowski also stressed the importance of an environment more conducive to theatrical creativity.
In her career, Swearingen appeared in eight movies, including "Bundle of Joy," starring Eddie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds. She also acted in several television shows, including "Cheyenne," "Will Travel," "Gunsmoke," "Sugarfoot," "The Alcoa Hour" and "Have a Gun".
Swearingen Hall is made up of Bolding Studio, Ben Harrison Theatre and the Samford Art Gallery. The department's next show, "One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest," opens Oct. 25 at 7:30 in Harrison Theatre.