Standing right in front, you’ll spot the Mondavi Center’s modern glass-panelled lobby wrapped in warm sandstone blocks and a dramatic, sweeping white canopy-just look for the striking blend of glass and stone on your left as you walk up.
Welcome to the Robert and Margrit Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts, where the world of music, dance, and theater finds a home as grand as a Broadway opening night. Imagine the excitement back in 2002 when the doors first opened with the UC Davis Symphony Orchestra filling Jackson Hall with music. This building is named for legendary wine-maker and arts enthusiast Robert Mondavi, whose $10 million gift helped make this musical dream come true-say what you want about wine, but clearly, it pairs well with great performances! Wander inside, and you’ll see how architecture comes alive, with sandstone lining the walls and huge glass panels flooding the lobby with golden California sunlight. Need peace and quiet for a violin solo? The hall was built as a “box within a box,” just to keep out the rumble of passing trains and the nearby freeway. Two beautiful venues await: the elegant Jackson Hall, seating 1,801, and the intimate Vanderhoef Studio Theatre, for quieter gatherings of 250. And yes, the stage here can literally be moved on air casters-talk about a floating performance! Alongside the sound magic, green construction techniques show that every note, nail, and panel is here in harmony with the Earth.
