After a long period of construction, the $33.5 million Cultural Arts Building is having its grand opening Jan. 25-28.

Housed in the Cultural Arts Building will be the Theatre Program, The Department of Art and Art History and the Department of Music. Inside, there are classrooms, computer labs, performance areas, seminar halls, rehearsal rooms and exhibit space that cater to the three departments, according to a press release issued by the university.

“The new building is really nice. I think the Theatre Program will really take off this year. As a student we’re allowed a lot more access to the new building and there are more aspects to the [new] building itself that are very useful to students,” said theatre and art student Kandyce Brown.

The 106,860 square-foot building was originally scheduled to be completed in Oct. 2006, but due to the complexity of the project, there were several construction delays. Norman Bemelmans, the director of cultural arts for UNCW, attributed most of the delays to issues such as soundproofing and lighting in the performance halls.

Kenan Hall, where the cultural arts departments used to hold most of their classes, will be gutted and renovated starting shortly after the move to the Cultural Arts Building is completed.

The new facility boasts several exciting state-of-the art technologies. In the recital hall, the acoustics can be adjusted to enhance the sound based on individual performances; a solo artist would have different acoustics than an orchestra. According to Bemelmans, the performance halls are very intimate in terms of the relationship between the audience and the performers, so much so that the audience feels like a participant in the show. The formal art showcase area is intriguing as well, and it will display both notable artwork from around the globe as well as works by UNCW students, faculty and the Wilmington community.

“It is truly one of the finest performance facilities around,” said Bemelmans.

Chamber Music Wilmington, a popular local performing company that focuses on chamber music such as orchestras and pianos, will permanently move its offices to the recital hall of the Cultural Arts Building. Many of the company’s rehearsals, in addition to its recitals, will be open for viewing to the public.

“They bring in some stellar, internationally acclaimed performers,” said Bemelmans.

The Cultural Arts Building differs from many other buildings on campus in that it is not named after a donor. For the time being, no benefactor has been declared, but the department is searching for one, and a few names have been brought up. Specifics, for privacy issues of the parties involved, could not be obtained.

The grand opening event is planned to last four days, from Thursday, Jan. 25 to Sunday, Jan. 28. Events will be held in all the new facilities, including the recital hall, mainstage theatre, the black box theatre and the art gallery. For a full listing of scheduled inauguration events, visit the Cultural Arts Web site at http://www.uncw.edu/arts.