The Butler Arts & Events Center (BAEC) is home to Butler University’s event facilities including performance venues, conference and meeting rooms, outdoor spaces and housing. Its performance venues welcome more than 300,000 visitors annually, with 35,000 from the student matinee series. The BAEC is comprised of five venues including its flagship venue Clowes Memorial Hall, Schrott Center for the Arts, Shelton Auditorium, Eidson-Duckwall Recital Hall, and Lilly Hall Studio Theatre. Programming includes the Butler Arts Presents series, BAEC’s Education Matinee Series, Jordan College of the Arts performances, Broadway In Indianapolis shows, various Butler lecture series, performances from local performing arts organizations and a variety of national touring shows.
About Student Education Matinees
Since 1991, the BAEC has presented curriculum-based, culturally diverse, fully accessible, and age appropriate performances and programs to all-aged audiences. Live performances and programs enrich audiences with a variety of learning styles and approaches, exposing and introducing students to specific art forms (dance, music, theatre, visual arts, and media). At the BAEC, our commitment is to providing a positive artistic experience through live performance, ultimately educating while entertaining.
Since COVID, the BAEC has been providing virtual education matinees FREE at no cost to school groups, to ensure students can still participate in an arts education while not being able to take field trips.
Teachers share how their students continue to talk about attending a matinee performance, months or even years after visiting. More than ONE MILLION students, teachers and guests have attended matinee performances at the BAEC. Until we can return to in-person student matinees, it is of the utmost importance for the BAEC to step up as an arts leader and provide these virtual performances for free.
How can you help?
Providing virtual student education matinees for free comes at a direct cost to the BAEC. Your gift will have an immediate impact by subsidizing the cost of students of seeing a theatrical performance. One student education matinee production will cost, on average, $5000 to provide virtually to the schools and teachers of Central Indiana.
Make your gift today and help us to continue giving more kids the chance to see a performance and building a culture of art appreciation throughout Central Indiana. Give the magic you experienced and start changing lives...one child at a time!
