Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion facts for kids
|
The Woodlands Pavilion
|
|
Entrance to the venue (c. 2012)
|
|
| Address | 2005 Lake Robbins Dr The Woodlands, TX 77380-1136 |
|---|---|
| Location | Greater Houston |
| Owner | The Center for the Performing Arts at The Woodlands |
| Operator | Live Nation |
| Type | Amphitheater |
| Capacity | 16,500 |
| Construction | |
| Opened | April 27, 1990 |
| Renovated | 2008-09 |
| Expanded | 1995 |
The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion is a cool outdoor concert place. People sometimes call it The Woodlands Pavilion or just The Pavilion. It is in The Woodlands, Texas, which is a town near Houston, Texas. This special place hosts many different kinds of shows. You can see amazing performing arts like ballets and operas. It also has concerts by popular music artists.
The Pavilion is owned and run by The Center for the Performing Arts at The Woodlands. This group is a non-profit organization. This means they use any money they make to help the Pavilion and its programs. The Pavilion can hold 16,500 people. It has 6,500 seats under a roof. There is also space for 10,000 people on a grassy lawn. It has been one of the busiest outdoor concert venues in the world!
Contents
History of The Pavilion
The idea for The Pavilion started in 1982. Leaders from the community and the Houston Symphony wanted a summer home for the symphony. They talked to George P. Mitchell, who founded The Woodlands. They imagined a place where both classical and modern artists could perform.
Building the Pavilion
Building the Pavilion began in June 1989. It opened its doors in April 1990. The first weekend was very exciting! The Houston Symphony performed, along with famous artists like Frank Sinatra. The country music bands Alabama and Clint Black also played. The venue is named after George P. Mitchell's wife, Cynthia Woods Mitchell.
When it first opened, The Pavilion had 3,000 seats. There was also room for 7,000 people on the grassy lawn. There were small stands for snacks and restrooms. The main entrance was on the south side.
Growing Bigger and Better
In 1994, the people in charge decided to make The Pavilion larger. They added 1,900 new seats without a roof. The lawn area was also made bigger for 1,100 more guests. New snack stands and restrooms were built. A bigger ticket office was added on the north side. This made it easier for people to get tickets.
In 1998, new offices were built for the staff. This helped the team run the center better. A special VIP area called The Woodforest Bank Club was also added. This club is a nice place for special guests. They can enjoy air conditioning and a bar during concerts. It can also host small events like meetings.
After the 2000 concert season, The Pavilion grew even more. The lawn area was expanded again. This brought the total capacity to almost 17,000 people. A large dressing room area with a kitchen was also added for performers.
Parking and Hurricane Ike
In 2002, a five-story parking garage was built. This helped solve parking problems for concert-goers. A walkway connects the garage to a nearby hotel. This allows hotel guests to walk directly to The Pavilion.
On September 13, 2008, Hurricane Ike caused a lot of damage. Strong winds ripped the roof and bent the steel supports. All concerts for the rest of 2008 were canceled. It took nine months to install a new roof. The new roof has six peaks and can handle very strong winds. During this repair, 2,000 more seats were added. This brought the total capacity to over 16,000.
What Shows Can You See?
The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion hosts many different types of shows.
- The Houston Symphony often performs here.
- You can also see the Houston Grand Opera.
- The Houston Ballet performs beautiful dance shows.
- Sometimes, special tours like the Cheek to Cheek Tour come to The Pavilion.
For many of these performing arts shows, lawn seating is free! This is thanks to money given by different sponsors.
See also
- List of contemporary amphitheaters
