MAPA launches final phase of capital campaign for new theatre

Maui Academy of Performing Arts (MAPA) is launching the final phase of its $15 million capital campaign to create the Main Street Arts Project, MAPA’s new performing arts campus in Wailuku. This project is the culmination of MAPA’s decades-long dream to own its own home and revitalize Wailuku through the arts.

Since 2016, MAPA has quietly secured $14.2 million for the project, including $10.4 million in federal funding, $1.1 million in State of Hawaiʻi grants-in-aid, $160,000 in grants from the County of Maui Office of Economic Development, and $2.54 million in contributions from foundations and individuals.

With construction scheduled to be complete this summer, MAPA is now turning to the community for its help in raising the final $800,000 which will be used to purchase the theatrical equipment packages, including lighting, audiovisual and seating.

The crown jewel of MAPA’s new campus is The Naylor, a state-of-the-art black box theatre. Located in the former National Dollar Store, The Naylor was named by philanthropist Susan Naylor through a generous $1 million donation. As a central hub for locally produced events, including theatre, dance, music, film and more, the new venue offers a flexible seating system that can be rearranged to create a variety of intimate and immersive experiences for audiences.

In addition to the theatre, The Main Street Arts Project includes new dance studios, drama classrooms, rehearsal spaces, and administrative offices located across the street in the Promenade building. MAPA completed the interior renovation of the Promenade in 2021.

“This project is about more than building a new home for MAPA; it’s about reimagining Wailuku through the arts,” said David Johnston, MAPA’s Artistic Director. “The Main Street Arts Project is the next step in realizing our community’s vision for a vibrant, arts-driven Wailuku.”

As a cornerstone for the Wailuku Arts District, MAPA’s Main Street Arts Project will attract more people to Wailuku, contributing to the success of local businesses by stimulating additional foot traffic at neighboring shops, galleries and restaurants. 

The project also hopes to contribute to island-wide efforts to diversify Maui’s economy by creating new jobs in the creative arts sector.

“It takes a lot of people behind-the-scenes to run a theatre. By creating new jobs for Maui residents, we’re strengthening the creative sector of the economy. And building a more diverse local economy is essential to developing the resilience our island needs to withstand future economic disruptions,” said Carolyn Wright, MAPA’s Executive Director. “People tend to think of the arts as just entertainment, but the arts are also an incredibly powerful economic tool.

Founded in 1974 as Maui Youth Theatre, MAPA has grown into one of the state’s largest nonprofit arts organizations, creating transformative arts opportunities for students, artists, volunteers, and audience members. Over the past 51 years, MAPA has enriched the lives of more than one million people of all ages – from keiki to kupuna – through its Broadway-quality theatrical productions, drama and dance classes, and arts education programs in the schools.

“We are so close to completing this vision to create a brighter future for the arts on Maui, and
with your help, we can reach the finish line,” said Virginia Cantorna, MAPA’s Board President. “If half the people who have been impacted by a MAPA program gave only $2 each, we’d hit our goal. Gifts of all sizes are welcome. No donation is too small – or too large.”
 
To donate or to learn more about the Main Street Arts Project, visit mauiacademy.org or contact Carolyn Wright at carolyn@mauiacademy.org or 808-244-8760 x221.