Tehachapi News

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Tehachapi Performing Arts Center (TPAC) recently received a $3,000 grant from the Bakersfield California Foundation (BCF) for the purchase of a studio piano for the Reception/Rehearsal Hall (R/R Hall) of the new Performing Arts and Museum Center (Center).

“We are grateful to the BCF for their support,” said B.J. Mitchell, TPAC president. “The R/R Hall will be used for a variety of events, such as wedding receptions, classes, private parties, church services, rehearsals for performing groups, small theater performances not requiring a full stage, etc. Our main theater, of course, will have a grand piano for performances.”

The R/R Hall will house an old-time fiddling museum in addition to the wind energy display in the lobby. The garden/patio area will be a memorial to the Kawaiisu Indians and the Green Room will display the history of the Tehachapi Community Orchestra.

The museum will be an expansion of the existing museum on Green Street, which will continue to be an integral part of the preservation of Tehachapi history. Both the Center and Museum will be under the direction of the Tehachapi Heritage League Board.

The new Center is to be a “green building,” and will include, among other features, a main stage fully equipped with state-of-the-art lighting, curtains and sound and a central control system allowing for the reduction of energy by heating/cooling individual rooms rather than the entire building. The Center also will take advantage of wind and solar energy devices, according to Mitchell.

Plans for the new Center include large TV screens on R/R Hall walls (similar to those at the Hollywood Bowl) from which an expanded audience can view events on the theater's main stage. This will expand the Center seating capacity to some 900 seats.

If you are interested in helping with the construction of the Center, please call B.J. Mitchell at 821-5110 to obtain a copy of TPAC's Planned Giving Program.