UConn Firsts: The First Concert at the Jorgensen Center for the Performing Arts
Picture the scene: women in elegant party dresses and men in tuxedos are ushering patrons from a pink, marbled lobby into a concert hall with neat rows of plush, velvet seats for a performance of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. It was Dec. 6, 1955, and what was then called Jorgensen Auditorium, a dream 15 years in the making, was finally a reality. Named for UConn’s longest-serving president, Albert Jorgensen, the facility has hosted commencement ceremonies, gubernatorial debates, hip hop concerts, standup comedians, and countless other cultural events that have enriched the lives of students, faculty, staff, and visitors. Today, Jorgensen presents 25-30 acclaimed artists every year, attracting more than 70,000 patrons every season. Also the home of the Jorgensen Gallery and the Harriet S. Jorgensen Theatre, in the years since that first brisk night, the cultural center has become as much a part of UConn’s history and heritage as its presidential namesake.
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