Mann Center for the Performing Arts
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Mann Center for The Performing Arts is a musical venue located in Philadelphia's West Fairmount Park. The facility operates as both an indoor performance hall and an outdoor music venue. The building first opened in 1976 as the summer performance home for The Philadelphia Orchestra and has since hosted numerous performances from several well-known musical groups.
[edit] History
The building first opened in 1976 as the Robin Hood Dell West, a companion facility to Fairmount Park's original performance band shell, the Robin Hood Dell [1]. It was created as an outdoor performance venue during the summer months for the Philadelphia Orchestra.
In 1978, the facility was renamed The Mann Music Center in honor of Frederic R. Mann, a Philadelphia businessman who championed the cause of summer musical performances in the civic space that is Fairmount Park.
[edit] The Building
The facility has a toal setaing capacity of 7,200, with 4,700 seats under the roof of the building and 2,500 outside. It is one of two such facilities [2]in the Philadelphia region. Today, the Mann Center holds performances year round. It is located near the western fringe of Fairmount Park in the Parkside neighborhood of West Philadelphia. SEPTA operates special shuttle buses between The Mann Center and Center City on performance days.
[edit] References
- ^ Philadelphia Orchestra. Philadelphia Orchestra. Retrieved on 2008-05-29.
- ^ Mann Center For The Performing Arts - History. Mann Center For The Performing Arts. Retrieved on 2008-05-29.
