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It has been forty years since Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts’ inception in 1979. Built in 1932 and formerly the Annapolis High School, the stately icon reigns in its Upper-West Street neighborhood. As it celebrates its anniversary, its visionary founders would be proud. With Margaret Davis, the president and CEO of Maryland Hall, at the helm, the building is a hive of activity with artistic honey at its core.
At any given time, its halls ring with symphonic music, singing, and the footsteps of dancers, directors, actors, and students. At certain hours, a visitor experiences a clay and paint-infused silence that is the wonderful sound of artists at work.
Maryland Hall is home to five artists in residence who create and share their work as well as teach classes and conduct outreach programs. There are four resident companies: The Annapolis Opera, Ballet Theatre of Maryland, The Annapolis Symphony, and Live Arts Maryland. The Annapolis Film Festival and the World Artist Experience are also major partners with Maryland Hall.
Performing and fine arts classes for all ages are ongoing in the first-floor classrooms. Film, opera, symphonic, or pop music by renowned performers debut in the grand 725-seat auditorium.
But there is more. Under Davis’s guidance, Maryland Hall has become a leader, stepping forth to merge art with social issues, adding new voices to cultural discourses. Recently, it hosted a racial equity institute program and an anti-violence initiative. “Art is both a unifying, a healing, and an inspiring force,” says Davis. “We have the opportunity to be a part of bringing people together and moving forward together…. This is the new Maryland Hall,” states Davis. “This is not what Maryland Hall is known for.”
She calls attention to Jovenes Artistas (Young Artists), an outreach program for students who need a safe environment after school. For seven years, this program has helped thousands of young people create their artwork, tell their stories, and find success in life.
Their strategic plan going forward is to engage more people in inspiring arts experiences. “The community is how we come together,” says Davis. To have an arts experience is particularly important these days when every human activity is in competition with computers and mobile phones. “Let’s get out of our houses and let’s put down our devices and let’s connect as human beings—because that’s what’s going to make the difference in our world. That’s what’s going to be exciting,” reflects Davis.
Maryland Hall is not only serving the community as an artistic center, but also forging new territory: harnessing art’s power to heal, inspire, and communicate complex social issues and difficult personal truths.
To learn more about Maryland Hall’s many offerings, go to marylandhall.org
Above: From left to right: Glass Studio, Ballet Theatre of Maryland, Teen Clay Camp, Resident Artist H.C. Porter | Photos by Glenn Miller
Main Photo: Grammy-winning artist Melissa Etheridge performed at Maryland Hall in August 2019.
Annapolis Home Magazine
Vol. 10, No. 5 2019