Music Building
New state-of-the-art renovations and facilities
Near North Neighborhood and to the west of Beaumont Tower, the Music Building is home to MSU’s College of Music, which consists of two neighboring buildings that include: classrooms, computer music studios, a computer-assisted-instruction classroom, a music education resource room, a music therapy clinic, a psychology of music laboratory, recording facilities, rehearsal spaces, private teaching studios and 81 practice rooms.
Originally built in 1939 as the first building on campus designed specifically for serving the liberal arts, the buildings have since undergone several renovations. The Billman Music Pavilion added 37,000 square feet of new space to the existing Music Building and an additional 8,500 square feet was renovated in other music facilities on campus. The pavilion features several new concert halls, practice rooms, recording suites, classrooms, and rehearsal halls for performances, rehearsals and teaching music.
Ensembles for orchestra, choir and more are open to students regardless of major. North Neighborhood also offers music living-learning communities, so students within the college have the opportunity to live with other music students only steps away from the Music Building. Students interested in the College of Music will need to complete an MSU application, College of Music supplemental application and schedule an audition with the college.
All-new practice and performance spaces
Recent renovations to the Music Building have added even more concert halls, rehearsal halls, practice rooms and classrooms for music students.
Communication Arts and Sciences Building
Home to world-class programs and a one-of-a-kind learning atmosphere
The Communication Arts and Sciences Building, home to the College of Communication Arts and Sciences, is known for its one-of-a-kind learning atmosphere and innovative classroom spaces. Numerous labs and centers throughout the building and campus focus on journalism, social media, game development and design, virtual/augmented reality, and communicative sciences. These facilities are available to both graduate and undergraduate students and include the Games for Entertainment and Learning (GEL) Lab and Immersive Media Lab, Spartan Newsroom, PLAY video game showcase, WKAR studios, iOS lab and more. The building offers countless opportunities for students to get real-world experience right on campus, build professional skills and collaborate with each other.
Students are encouraged to take advantage of all of the opportunities available to them, including experiential learning, career education, student advising and networking with alumni.
Undergraduate research, internships and employment at WKAR Studios and Focal Point (a student-produced newscast for journalism students) are some of the many opportunities available to students interested in studying the communication arts and sciences.
Designing games for entertainment and learning
Students work in the Games for Entertainment and Learning (GEL) Lab in the Communication Arts and Sciences Building.
Kresge Art Center
Home to gallery and exhibit spaces for undergraduate and graduate students
Built in 1959 and renovated in 2005, the Kresge Art Center is home to the Department of Art, Art History and Design. The department offers undergraduate and graduate studies in apparel and textile design, art education, art history and visual culture, graphic design and studio art (ceramics, drawing, electronic art and intermedia, painting, photography, printmaking and sculpture).
Before the opening of the Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum, the Kresge Art Center served as the main art museum on campus. The building is home to studio art space with over 6,500 works of art spanning from prehistoric to contemporary times, and features of the museum include exhibitions, collections, public lectures, workshops and publications.
The Kresge Art Center is also home to many gallery and exhibit spaces that can be used by undergraduate and graduate students. Gallery 101 and Gallery 114 are reserved for students’ work, and graduate students even have 24-hour access to many studios and facilities where they can conduct research, such as the Visual Resource Library.
Student art takes center stage
Galleries are reserved specifically for student work each semester.
Scene Shop
MSU is a national leader in theatre production and set design.
Located on Farm Lane just south of main campus, the Scene Shop is a state-of-the-art facility used to create scenery for theatrical productions. Formerly known as the Performing Arts Teaching Laboratory, the Scene Shop is where all the sets for the Department of Theatre and the College of Music opera program get their start.
The 9,370-square-foot building, complete with 22-foot clearance ceilings, ensures that students can construct scenery in full while working in the Scene Shop — eliminating the guesswork of assembling scenery separately and putting it together in the theatre. Along with the vast space the building provides, students and professors can use new equipment, tools and technology to assemble set pieces. New equipment includes a full welding area with fume hoods, computerized numerical control (CNC) routers that can do complex cuts in a fraction of time when compared to cutting by hand, a woodworking area and a full-size paint studio with a fume hood for painting full-scale scenery.
All hands on deck
Theatre students create props and scenery at the Scene Shop that are used in theatre productions at MSU each academic year.
Wharton Center for Performing Arts
Bringing inspiration, creativity and opportunity to MSU and the world
Opened in 1982 and named after former MSU president Clifton R. Wharton and his wife, Dolores, the Clinton and Dolores Wharton Center for Performing Arts is Michigan’s largest performing arts venue. The MSU campus and greater Michigan community celebrate art, communication and entertainment at its two theatres: Cobb Great Hall and the Pasant Theatre.
Each year the Cobb Great Hall hosts concerts, recitals, performances, speakers, Broadway shows and other special events. Tickets for these events are available for purchase by students and the general public each year, and many shows offer student discounts. The Pasant Theatre, the smaller of the two stages, is home to more intimate interactions between performers and the audience. Often, actors and directors will engage with the audience after special viewings of performances.
The Wharton Center is also dedicated to furthering the reach, power and inspiration of the performing arts. The facility is used for teaching purposes with MSU students and younger students from the surrounding community. Students from a variety of majors are encouraged to get involved at the Wharton Center, through employment, acting, directing or stage work.
Broadway comes to campus
Each year the Wharton Center hosts touring productions of Broadway favorites.
Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum
Explore an incredible collection of contemporary art at MSU’s own art museum.
The Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum — otherwise known to students as the “spaceship,” based on its design by award-winning architect Zaha Hadid — is dedicated to exploring international contemporary culture and ideas through art.
Named one of the best university art museums in America by Architectural Digest, MSU Broad offers a permanent collection of over 10,000 works and dynamic public programming that features local, national and international artists. In addition, the museum hosts the New in Student Performance series, which showcases performances from MSU students including dance, poetry, film and music.
70%
of the facility is dedicated to exhibit space
Students from all fields of study are encouraged to get involved at the museum, which has a range of social, educational and professional offerings. Experiential learning and paid opportunities are available for undergraduate and graduate students, and graduate students can even showcase their work and use the museum as a research facility.
Admission is free to the museum, and it’s also a secret study spot for many students on campus.
A masterpiece of a museum
The Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum is a bold, angular steel and glass wonder designed by renowned architect Zaha Hadid.
Art, Communication and Entertainment Tour
At MSU, the creative fields are celebrated across campus, with Big Ten facilities that give you the opportunities and resources to bring your creative ideas to life. The personalized support you receive here will help you build your creative skillset into a successful career.
Tour Stops
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