Like many major metros’ downtown areas, downtown Columbus has its fair share of historic churches – enough, in fact, that Columbus Landmarks organizes an annual tour of some of the most interesting and impressive.
CAPA
One such church, though, only looks impressive from the outside: the Central Presbyterian Church on South Third Street. Just steps from Columbus Commons and the Ohio Theatre, among other attractions, the church has sat empty since 2011.
Not for much longer, though. CAPA is now working to transform it into a performance venue – one much unlike its other Downtown venues, such as the Ohio, Palace and Southern theaters.
Those theaters are, after all, known for the high-profile performances they host. The renovated church, when complete, will focus on smaller-scale productions, offering opportunities for artists and ensembles that might otherwise be unable to gain a foothold Downtown.
The $14 million renovation project is expected to begin this spring. CAPA’s goal is to have the new music hall up and running toward the end of 2027.
The church, built in 1859, is one of the oldest buildings in downtown Columbus. CAPA bought the church in 2013, not long after its congregation deconsecrated the building, with the intention of eventually adding it to the organization’s venue line-up – and to help ensure it would remain standing.
“You walk into the building now and there’s just a general sense of awe,” says CAPA President and CEO Chad Whittington.
CAPA intends to preserve as much of the historic church as possible. Even though it’s been unoccupied for more than a decade, Whittington says, it still maintains a considerable number of memorable features.
“When we do the work, the 1859 church… gets a facelift, but it doesn’t change significantly,” he says.
Much of the work ahead entails the creation of support spaces for performers: dressing rooms, bathrooms, a kitchen, storage space, a loading dock and more. And the organization intends to work in as much of the existing décor as possible, incorporating parts of the church’s massive pipe organ and maintaining the stained glass – particularly the piece on the west side of the building, which won an award at the St. Louis World’s Fair in 1904.
A later addition to the building, constructed in 1926, most recently housed a Sunday school facility. This section, located on the east side of the building, is scheduled to be torn down, in large part because it would present serious accessibility issues.
CAPA still has a considerable amount of work to do before its projected 2027 opening date. Work between now and then will include:
- Construction of dressing rooms and stage space
- Addition of ADA-compliant infrastructure, fire prevention, air conditioning and other safety systems
- Reinforcing and adding railings to the balconies that look down on what will become the performance space
- Creation of an atrium, a lobby, concessions and restrooms
- Maintenance work such as painting and structural repairs
The organization will also add a two-story bar area. The bottom part will be open for patrons during performances, while the second-floor area will operate independent of the performing space, serving as a pre- or post-show drinks option for Downtown arts patrons.
“I feel like it’ll liven up this area a little bit,” Whittington says.
CAPA anticipates capacity of 300-600 shows there, depending on setup: the lower end for shows with seating, the higher end for standing-room-only shows. Performances will take place in the space now occupied by the original church sanctuary, while attendees will be able to watch from the floor, balconies or concierge areas.
Compare those capacity numbers to the Ohio Theatre, which can host almost 2,800 patrons, or the Palace Theatre, which tops out at just below 2,700. The organization’s other Downtown-area venues are more modestly sized – a little over 900 for the Southern Theatre and the Davidson Theatre at the Riffe Center, and just shy of 600 for the Lincoln Theatre – but their schedules are so packed that they often have to turn away aspiring performers.
“(We’ll be) connecting with artists in ways we can’t with a larger theater,” says Whittington.
The new venue, then, will serve as a home for these artists, be they local performers looking to break into Downtown or national performers who may not be able to get on stage at the Lincoln. CAPA anticipates that many of them will be artists it has never managed to host at its other venues.
CAPA
“There’s a ton of opportunity,” Whittington says. “It’s not going to be for any one genre.”
In addition to accommodating those small and mid-sized performances, CAPA envisions more affordable programming at the new venue, bringing in patrons who may not be able to splurge for Hamilton tickets. The goal, Whittington says, is to have at least one night a week in which the venue hosts a low-cost production: school groups, early-career bands, acoustic performers, small theater troupes, comedians, etc.
Beyond its prominence Downtown and historic character, the church also boasts great acoustics, Whittington says, and can be configured a number of different ways to bring in different types of performances: Think immersive experiences or theater in the round. It will even be able to accommodate dance floors in multiple configurations.
And CAPA anticipates uses that go beyond artistic performances. Cultural events, summer camps, craft shows, educational programs and event rentals are all on the potential menu. The organization has already put together a lengthy list of local organizations it hopes to someday bring into the new venue, including Central Community House’s Transit Arts youth program, the Momentum youth dance program and Columbus City Schools’ Culinary Arts program.
Garth Bishop is a contributing editor at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.
