- Eccles Theater in Salt Lake City remains closed for renovations until mid-August.
- A new art installation, "Storytelling: The Breath of Life," spans 24 windows to keep the building vibrant while it's closed.
- The theater expects to reopen well before the 2025-2026 Broadway at the Eccles season
SALT LAKE CITY — Eccles Theater remains closed for renovations for a few more weeks, but there's a new way to enjoy some art while it undergoes a facelift.
The downtown Salt Lake City theater unveiled "Storytelling: The Breath of Life" this week, which is a seasonal public art installation created by local artist Trevor Dahl. The 75-foot-long piece spans 24 windows, depicting many famous plays, along with ancient myths, poetry, comic books and cinema.
"We wanted something exciting and colorful on the windows to engage passersby and guests at Steppin' on Main events," while the theater is closed, said Angela Vanderwell, Eccles Theater's general manager.
Eccles Theater closed last month, a day after a short run of "& Juliet," which marked the end of the theater's Broadway at the Eccles 2024-2025 season. Crews are replacing the theater's carpeting and stage floor, while also refinishing the terrazzo flooring in the lobby. The renovation is expected to be complete in time for the Main Street Fashion Show, a Steppin' on Main event, scheduled for Aug. 15.
The Regent Street Black Box, at the east end of the facility, remains open but hasn't had an event this month. It has a pair of events scheduled for early August before the rest of the theater reopens.
Eccles Theater, which opened in 2016, is coming off a banner year that ended with more than $11 million in revenue and a $5.1 million profit, both records since it opened. This year is also off to a strong start, said Matt Castillo, director of Salt Lake County's arts and culture division, in an update last month.
Touring Broadway shows have been a key piece of the puzzle, accounting for about 60% of ticket sales despite comprising 40% of all events.
"Many of our runs end up breaking all sorts of records because Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County and the whole region just absolutely loves Broadway," Castillo said.
The theater upgrades will wrap up well before the 2025-2026 Broadway at the Eccles season begins. "Some Like it Hot" will launch the new season on Sept. 30.
In the meantime, people can enjoy the new art outside the theater. It "perfectly captures the spirit of creativity" that the theater typically provides while it undergoes its "metamorphosis," Vanderwell said.
"Storytelling: The Breath of Life" keeps the theater "awake during its transformation," Dahl adds.
"Eccles Theater, to me, is the premier venue for storytelling in the state," he said in a statement. "It's such an inspiring space, and I wanted to create a piece that was suitably grand, incorporated my love for theater, and highlighted the importance of storytelling for humans in general."
