Although the lunchtime crowds have moved to the Danforth University Center and plans for renovation have been delayed, Mallinckrodt Center still plays a major function in programming by Washington University’s student groups.

Several student groups still use Mallinckrodt for varying reasons despite the dominance of the Danforth University Center (DUC).

For example, students in Carnaval rely on Mallinckrodt because the show takes place in the Edison Theatre located there. The lower level of Mallinckrodt, including the former food court area and the Gargoyle, is also still used for rehearsals and as an area for performers to wait before going on stage.

Senior Nadia Abouzaid, co-chair for Carnaval, worries that renovating Mallinckrodt could render the meeting spaces inaccessible for performing groups. The old food court area is very useful now that the University made changes to it, according to Abouzaid.

“Once [the University] renovated it, it became a really prime space on campus to use for practice,” Abouzaid said.

Other performances, including Diwali, Lunar New Year Festival and Black Anthology rely on Mallinckrodt for similar reasons.
Abouzaid also noted that the DUC lacks any large spaces to practice.

“I feel like the University did a really poor job of planning when they built the DUC, because [there was] news that they wanted to tear down Mallinckrodt or renovate it, but they didn’t provide any alternate large practice spaces for students to use,” Abouzaid said.

Abouzaid is concerned that the University will close Mallinckrodt so that it can  do the planned renovations, leaving Carnaval performers with no place to practice.

“I have no idea what [Carnaval] isgoing to do if Mallinckrodt’s not open to them,” Abouzaid said. “I was really nervous about where our dancers were going to practice, but thankfully they didn’t do that.”

While performers may use the building frequently, most students go there much less often.

“I feel like Mallinckrodt as a building has become less central, because when the food court was situated in that building, I think it was really the center of campus life, and now it’s not as much. But for me, our dance groups definitely utilize those spaces for practice,” Abouzaid said.

With a maximum capacity of 499 as determined by the fire code, the Gargoyle is almost unmatched on campus in its ability to host events with large audiences like concerts.

Mallinckrodt also continues to draw students to the building’s many businesses, including FedEx Office, the Danforth Campus Bookstore and Bank of America.

“To me, [the Mallinckrodt Center is] basically where the campus store is and Bank of America is. Those are the only things I routinely use Mallinckrodt for,” sophomore Ben Ingell said. “The DUC doesn’t really replace it, all it seems to add to me is a new place to eat.”

Ingell also said that he rarely uses the DUC for anything other than the food areas and that he still goes to Mallinckrodt because he uses the businesses located there.

The University had planned to renovate the Mallinckrodt Center and provide additional space to the businesses that will remain there, but the plan was put on hold in response to the recent drop in the school’s endowment.

The renovation would have cost the University $20 million.

The University has not indicated when new construction projects will resume.

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Tags: bank of america, bookstore, construction, danforth university center, edison theatre, fedex office, gargoyle, Mallinckrodt center, mallinckrodt food court

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 1st, 2009 at 3:31 pm and is filed under Facilities and Construction, News. You can follow any responses to this entry through this feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.