The Benedicta Arts Center (BAC) is a performing arts center located on the campus of the College of Saint Benedict. Built in 1964 by the Sisters of the

Order of Saint Benedict The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict ( la, Ordo Sancti Benedicti, abbreviated as OSB), are a Christian monasticism, monastic Religious order (Catholic), religious order of the Catholic Church following the Rule of Saint Benedic ...

in the city of St. Joseph, MN, the Benedicta Arts Center has remained a powerhouse for the arts in Central

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

. The BAC presents three annual performances by the

Minnesota Orchestra The Minnesota Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Founded originally as the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra in 1903, the Minnesota Orchestra plays most of its concerts at Minneapolis's Orchestra Hall. History Em ...

and has recently commissioned works b
Diavolo
an
Merce Cunningham Dance Company
The BAC houses the Theater Department, and half of the music and art departments for the

College of Saint Benedict/Saint John's University The College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University are two closely related private, Catholic higher education institutions in Minnesota. The College of Saint Benedict is a women's college located in St. Joseph, while Saint John's Uni ...

. The building also houses 2 art galleries, a music library and 6 class rooms. The BAC also houses the Arlene Helgeson Dance Studio, the Darnell Amphitheater, the Gold'n'Plump Office Suite, and the Book Arts Studio.

Escher Auditorium

Escher Auditorium functions as both a concert performance hall as well as a 974-seat theater. The back wall of the theater can be raised to reveal a traditional theatrical stage house which is used for dance companies and concerts. The auditorium has 2 balcony levels above the main floor that seat about 100 audience members each. The main stage is equipped with a pair of hydraulic lifts that can also be lowered to pit or house level, allowing space for either an orchestra or additional audience members. The auditorium was previously named Petters Auditorium after

Tom Petters Thomas Joseph Petters is a former American businessman and chairman and CEO of Petters Group Worldwide, a company which stole over $2 billion in a Ponzi scheme. He was convicted of massive business fraud in 2009 and is now imprisoned at the Unit ...

gave a large donation for a renovation of the auditorium. After Petters' conviction of running a

ponzi scheme A Ponzi scheme (, ) is a form of fraud that lures investors and pays profits to earlier investors with funds from more recent investors. Named after Italian businessman Charles Ponzi, the scheme leads victims to believe that profits are comin ...

in 2009, the College decided to rename the auditorium.

Gorecki Family Theater

The Gorecki Theater shares its stage house with the Escher Auditorium, making it one of the few theaters in the country with this unique design. The space hosts performances of the

CSB/SJU The College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University are two closely related private, Catholic higher education institutions in Minnesota. The College of Saint Benedict is a women's college located in St. Joseph, while Saint John's Univ ...

theater department in addition to lectures and other performances requiring a smaller venue. It seats 292 patrons and, thanks to a hydraulic elevator and seating system, is capable of featuring both

Proscenium A proscenium ( grc-gre, προσκήνιον, ) is the metaphorical vertical plane of space in a theatre, usually surrounded on the top and sides by a physical proscenium arch (whether or not truly "arched") and on the bottom by the stage floor ...

and Thrust performances.

Notable Performers

''These Performers have appeared on either the Gorecki Stage or in the Escher Auditorium'' #

Kathy Mattea Kathleen Alice Mattea (born June 21, 1959) is an American country music and bluegrass singer. Active since 1984 as a recording artist, she has charted more than 30 singles on the '' Billboard'' Hot Country Songs charts, including four that re ...

# Merce Cunningham Dance Company (2007, 2005,...) # Diavolo Dance Company (2006, 2003) # The Samul Nori Korean Drummers (2003) # Trinity Irish Dance Company (2003) #

Preservation Hall Jazz Band The Preservation Hall Jazz Band is a New Orleans jazz band founded in New Orleans by tuba player Allan Jaffe in the early 1960s. The band derives its name from Preservation Hall in the French Quarter. In 2005, the Hall's doors were closed for a p ...

(2007) #

Kronos Quartet The Kronos Quartet is an American string quartet based in San Francisco. It has been in existence with a rotating membership of musicians for almost 50 years. The quartet covers a very broad range of musical genres, including contemporary classic ...

(2006) #

In the Heart of the Beast In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre (also known as Heart of the Beast or HOBT) is a puppet company and nonprofit organization from Minneapolis, Minnesota. The company has written and performed scores of full-length puppet plays, per ...

Puppet and Mask Theater (2006) #

Michael Moschen Michael Moschen (born 1955 in Greenfield, Massachusetts) is an American juggler. He received a Fellowship from the MacArthur Foundation (the Genius Grant) in 1990, has appeared on TV on PBS, and did ads for Motorola. Cirque du Soleil commissioned ...

2006 #

Dianne Reeves Dianne Elizabeth Reeves (born October 23, 1956) is an American jazz singer. Biography Dianne Reeves was born in Detroit, Michigan, into a musical family. Her father sang, her mother played trumpet, her uncle is bassist Charles Burrell, and h ...

2006 #

Mark Morris Dance Group Mark William Morris (born August 29, 1956) is an American dancer, choreographer and director whose work is acclaimed for its craftsmanship, ingenuity, humor, and at times eclectic musical accompaniments. Morris is popular among dance aficionados, ...

(2005) # Luna Negra Dance Theater (2006) # Kronos Quartet (2006) # Ladysmith Black Mambazo (2007) # Cherish the Ladies (2007) # Ron K. Brown/EVIDENCE (2008) # The Seán Curran Company(2008) # Edgar Meyer (2008) # Urban Bush Women (2008) # Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder (2011) # Natalie MacMaster (2011) # Spirit of Uganda (2012) # Keb' Mo' (2012) # Soweto Gospel Choir (2014) # Cirque Alfonse: TIMBER! (2015) # Bela Fleck & Abigail Washburn (2015) {{Authority control Performing arts centers in Minnesota College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University Tourist attractions in Stearns County, Minnesota