The Wilson Center at Cape Fear Community College is slated for an expansion, according to an announcement Thursday.

CFCC is hosting an event on Tuesday to announce details about the expansion of the downtown Wilmington performance theater and to recognize the lead donors for the project.

“Cape Fear Community College continues to grow, and the Wilson Center has been integral to our impact in the Cape Fear region. Shows at the Wilson Center often serve as an introduction to all the great things we do at CFCC and give our students amazing access to unique educational opportunities,” Shane Fernando, vice president of advancement and the arts at CFCC, said in a press release. “As we continue to expand across the college, our goal is always to create pathways for student success and enriching experiences for our community.”  

Sonya Johnson, director of marketing and communications at CFCC, said officials are waiting until the event on Tuesday to release more details on the expansion.

The Wilson Center, which opened in 2015, has been hosting national Broadway touring productions, concerts, symphonic performances, recitals, dance productions and more.

The center serves as a laboratory for student learning, with students working on every show; performing on the stage in CFCC Drama Department productions and local productions, and making use of the 26 instructional spaces as part of their learning journey, the release stated.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the theater, like others around the country, closed for more than a year. With loosening state restrictions, the Wilson Center opened in April for a socially distanced and limited-capacity show.

Read more on the Wilson Center’s return and impact in the community here.

The college also announced this week that the Wilson Center was awarded a $10,000 grant by the National Endowment for the Arts to support a production and community dance residency of the Invertigo Dance Theatre during the 2022-23 season.

The invitation-only event for the announcement will be at the lower lobby of the Wilson Center on Tuesday from 6 to 7 p.m.

“Since Cape Fear Community College opened the Wilson Center to the community more than five years ago, we have welcomed hundreds of thousands of guests for Broadway productions, concerts, dance, comedy, commencements, and numerous other events,” Fernando said. “We are very excited to embark on this next stage of the journey for the Wilson Center.”