Archives West Finding Aid

Kingsbury Hall was built on the University of Utah campus in 1930 in order to provide an assembly hall for students as well as a home base for the Speech Arts Department and Theatre Program. Since then, it has become a major venue for concerts, lectures, theater, and other cultural events in Salt Lake City and the surrounding Wasatch Front. The bulk of the University's theatrical activities were staged there until the Pioneer Memorial Theater was opened in 1962. KUER broadcasted from Kingsbury's basement from 1960 until 1993 when it moved to the newly constructed Dolores Dore Eccles Broadcast Center. It was also home to Ballet West, the Repertory Dance Theatre, the Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company, the Utah Opera Company, and the Utah Symphony until they all relocated to Abravanel Hall and the Capitol Theater in downtown Salt Lake City in the late 1970s. Drastic budget cuts during the 1980s resulted in Kingsbury Hall being placed under the administration of the Department of Music. At one point during that decade, Kingsbury was even threatened with either being torn down or having its function changed, but it survived intact due to the historical value of the building and support from university and community leaders. The 1990s were a much brighter decade for Kingsbury Hall as it underwent a two-year $14 million major renovation beginning in June 1994 and lasting until March 25, 1996. Since reopening, the renovated Kingsbury Hall has continued to be a major venue for artistic performances and lectures for the University of Utah and the surrounding community.