Stevens Center

The Stevens Center, formally known as the Roger L. Stevens Center, is a major performing arts venue in downtown Winston-Salem, North Carolina. It is owned and operated by the University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA), serving both as a presentation venue for the school and as a home for professional, community, and touring productions. The building contains a two-level auditorium with approximately 1,380 seats and is used for performances or rehearsals during most of the year. The building began as the Carolina Theatre, a movie theater. In 1980, the Winston-Salem Journal donated the property to the North Carolina School of the Arts, now known as UNCSA. The school subsequently undertook a substantial renovation financed in part through approximately $9.6 million in state bond funding. The renovated venue opened on April 22, 1983, and was named for Roger L. Stevens, a theater producer and real-estate executive associated with major American performing arts institutions. The opening gala was designed as a significant cultural event, featuring the UNCSA Symphony Orchestra under Leonard Bernstein, violinist Isaac Stern as soloist, and actor Gregory Peck as master of ceremonies. Other notable attendees included Agnes de Mille, Cliff Robertson, Governor James Hunt, former President Gerald Ford and Betty Ford, and Lady Bird Johnson. The Stevens Center functions as an institutional platform rather than a conventional commercial entertainment brand. Its principal role is to provide a professional-scale stage for UNCSA productions, including orchestral concerts, wind ensemble performances, opera, dance, musicals, and annual holiday presentations such as The Nutcracker. The venue also hosts the Winston-Salem Symphony, Piedmont Opera, Piedmont Wind Symphony, the North Carolina Dance Festival, the RiverRun International Film Festival, community programming, and touring artists. UNCSA's Community Music School and several offices also occupy portions of the building. The venue has additionally been used for music-video production, including filming associated with the rock band Daughtry. The center has experienced operational and financial challenges. A federal Economic Development Administration grant-related matter arose after the property title was transferred from UNCSA to NCSA, Inc., leading to a demand that the institution repay $3.12 million. The venue also encountered tax-related issues involving Forsyth County. In 1990, UNCSA entered an arrangement to present preview performances of Broadway musicals, but the relationship was discontinued after the school incurred losses. These episodes illustrate the difficulty of operating a large performance facility within an educational institution while balancing public service, artistic ambition, and financial sustainability. Today, the Stevens Center remains one of the principal performance venues in the Piedmont Triad region. Its identity is closely linked to UNCSA's educational mission and to Winston-Salem's broader cultural infrastructure. Rather than offering a single product line, the center provides a year-round platform for live theater, music, opera, dance, film, festivals, and arts education.

The Stevens Center occupies a downtown Winston-Salem building that originally operated as the Carolina Theatre, a cinema. In 1980, the Winston-Salem Journal donated the property to the North Carolina School of the Arts, the institution now called the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. The school converted the former theater into a large-scale performing arts venue, using approximately $9.6 million in state bond financing for the renovation. The refurbished facility opened on April 22, 1983, under the name Roger L. Stevens Center. It was named for Roger L. Stevens, a prominent American theater producer and real-estate executive. The opening gala emphasized the center's intended status as a major cultural venue: the UNCSA Symphony Orchestra performed under Leonard Bernstein, Isaac Stern appeared as soloist, and Gregory Peck served as master of ceremonies. The guest list included prominent figures from American theater, government, and public life, including Agnes de Mille, Cliff Robertson, Governor James Hunt, Gerald Ford and Betty Ford, and Lady Bird Johnson. After opening, the center became an important performance facility for UNCSA and the Winston-Salem community. Its auditorium has two principal seating levels, the orchestra and balcony, with a capacity of about 1,380. The building rises ten stories and accommodates performance, rehearsal, administrative, and educational uses. UNCSA presents productions there across several disciplines, including symphonic and wind music, opera, dance, musical theater, and holiday programming. The center also provides a home for organizations such as the Winston-Salem Symphony, Piedmont Opera, and Piedmont Wind Symphony, while hosting festivals, touring productions, and local events. The venue's operating history has included institutional and financial complications. A federal Economic Development Administration matter followed the transfer of the title from UNCSA to NCSA, Inc.; the agency demanded repayment of $3.12 million. The center also encountered disputes involving taxes and Forsyth County. In 1990, UNCSA attempted to expand the venue's commercial role by entering an agreement to host preview performances of Broadway musicals. That arrangement was later terminated because the school was losing money on the presentations. Despite these challenges, the Stevens Center developed into a heavily used regional facility. It is reported to be occupied by rehearsals or performances on all but roughly 70 days of the year. Its programming includes UNCSA's annual and special productions, the Nutcracker, opera from the A.J. Fletcher Opera Institute, spring dance presentations, all-school musicals, orchestral concerts, film events, and community arts activities. The building has also been used as a filming location, including for a music video by the band Daughtry. The center's present identity is inseparable from UNCSA's educational mission. It serves simultaneously as a professional venue, a training environment for emerging artists, an anchor for downtown cultural activity, and a platform for outside arts organizations. Its brand is therefore institutional and civic rather than commercial: the value it offers lies in access to a substantial performance space, the visibility of UNCSA's artistic programs, and the range of cultural activity it supports in Winston-Salem.

• 1990

  Broadway preview program is discontinued

  [1]Stevens Centeren.wikipedia.org

  UNCSA ended an arrangement to bring Broadway musical previews to the venue after the program generated losses for the school.

• 1983

  Renovated Stevens Center opens

  [1]Stevens Centeren.wikipedia.org

  The renovated venue opened on April 22 with a gala featuring Leonard Bernstein, Isaac Stern, Gregory Peck, and the UNCSA Symphony Orchestra.

• 1980

  Carolina Theatre donated to the North Carolina School of the Arts

  [1]Stevens Centeren.wikipedia.org

  The Winston-Salem Journal donated the former Carolina Theatre property to the North Carolina School of the Arts, creating the basis for a university-operated performing arts center.

A university-affiliated regional performing arts center that combines professional presentation, arts education, community programming, and touring entertainment in a landmark downtown venue.

• University performing arts · 1983

  UNCSA Performance Programs

  The center presents the University of North Carolina School of the Arts' major public performances, including symphony and wind ensemble concerts, opera, dance, musicals, and interdisciplinary productions. These events connect the venue's professional-scale facilities with UNCSA's conservatory training programs and provide students with experience performing before public audiences.

• Classical music and opera · 1983

  Regional Symphony and Opera Presentations

  The Stevens Center serves as a principal Winston-Salem venue for the Winston-Salem Symphony, Piedmont Opera, and Piedmont Wind Symphony. Their programming broadens the center's use beyond university productions and establishes it as a recurring home for professional regional arts organizations.

• Live entertainment and community arts · 1983

  Community and Touring Events

  The venue accommodates touring productions, local performances, festivals, film events, and community programming. Listed uses include the Something for Everyone series, the North Carolina Dance Festival, and the RiverRun International Film Festival, reflecting the center's role as a flexible civic arts facility.

• 1990

  End Broadway musical preview arrangementStrategy

  Background

  UNCSA had entered an arrangement intended to bring preview performances of Broadway musicals to the Stevens Center.

  Action taken

  The school ended the arrangement after the presentations produced financial losses.

  Aftermath

  The venue continued to emphasize UNCSA productions, resident arts organizations, touring work, and community programming rather than the discontinued preview model.

  Reported loss from Broadway preview arrangement. (By 1990)

  Source

• 1980

  Convert a former movie theater into a university performing arts centerStrategy

  Background

  After receiving the former Carolina Theatre property, the North Carolina School of the Arts needed a substantial venue for instruction, production, and public presentation.

  Action taken

  The school renovated the building with state bond funding and established it as the Roger L. Stevens Center.

  Aftermath

  The facility opened in 1983 and became a central performance venue for UNCSA and the wider Winston-Salem arts community.

  Source

1. 1Stevens Centeren.wikipedia.org
2. 2University of North Carolina School of the Artsuncsa.edu