Meydenbauer Center Will Bring Touring Acts To Bellevue

BELLEVUE, WA — A glaring gap in the downtown Bellevue cultural scene will soon be filled. The theater at the Meydenbauer Center — up until now was only available as a rental space — will begin hosting national touring shows beginning this fall.

But don't call it a downtown performing arts center just yet. Jeff Vaughan, Meydenbauer Center facility services director, says that the venue is just "dipping its toe" into the performing arts world right now.

"We have to prove with these first four shows that we can get audiences in," Vaughan said.

The first two touring acts arriving this fall will be the Canadian stomp-grass group The Paperboys and the national touring company of Chicago's Second City. On New Year's Eve, a nationally known comedian will play two shows (the name is still under-wraps), and the Peking Acrobats will swing through in February 2020.

Vaughan said that the idea of bringing touring shows to the 410-seat theater has been in the works for a few years. But the center has had to carefully assess the financial risk. The Meydenbauer Center is a public agency run by the Bellevue Convention Center Authority, so it can't set up a nonprofit to accept donations — and offset costs — like most performing arts centers do.

The theater is also committed to maintaining its rental availability, which limits how many touring shows can use the venue. Other regional PACs can host up to 30 events per season. Even if Meydenbauer's first round of shows are successful, it might be up to five years before it can handle that many shows.

But a performing arts venue is missing in downtown Bellevue. Vaughan sees a major opportunity to harness the massive growth in Bellevue and other local cities outside Seattle to attract a new audience.

"We hope the community turns out to show they want more of this," Vaughan said. "If the community says they want more, that will grease the wheels to allow us to grow the program."

You can catch Second City and The Paperboys in October. Tickets start at around $25.