From its time as a baseball field to the home of the beloved Blueno sculpture, Ruth J. Simmons Quadrangle has been a staple of the Brown campus. But starting this June, the quad was closed off to the public for the construction of a new amphitheater.
The renovated quadrangle, set to open with an official ceremony in late October, will offer new outdoor seating options and a communal space for student organizations and classes to convene. It will also feature a new accessible route from Soldier’s Arch to the Main Green. Other changes include improved drainage, adjusted entries to the Lincoln Field Building and Maxcy Hall and the planting of hardwood trees that will bloom in the spring.
The plan for an amphitheater on Simmons Quad builds on one first conceived in the early 20th century. In 1901, Frank Law Olmsted Jr. — son of the world-renowned landscape architect behind works including New York City’s Central Park and Boston’s Emerald Necklace — was asked by the University to conduct a study of Simmons Quad, then known as Lincoln Field.
At this point in time, Lincoln Field was not officially part of the University, according to University Architect Craig Barton ’78, but, “there was an interest in formalizing what had become a kind of gathering space for the University.”
The study mainly focused on preparing “plans for (the quadrangle’s) grading and the location of future buildings,” according to a 1902 Brown Daily Herald article. It also suggested the construction of a “traditional amphitheater” for the then-University sports field, according to Barton.
Though Olmsted’s plans were never used, the hopes for an amphitheater resurfaced several years ago after a donor asked President Christina Paxson P’19 P’MD’20 if it was possible, Barton said. At the time, there was no push for the project.
That has since changed.
As Brown’s campus expanded further east with the construction of the Brook Street Residence Halls, the Engineering Resource Center and new athletic facilities, a more accessible route from Thayer Street to the Main Green became necessary, Barton said.
“If you had any mobility challenges as a permanent condition or if you’d broken an ankle and you were on crutches, you were out of luck,” Barton said, referring to the steps that flanked either side of the quadrangle. “You couldn’t get from Soldier’s Arch up to the Main Green without going back out to Waterman (Street) and coming back through Faunce Arch, which is a hike.”
With a renewed push for a renovation, the University took the opportunity to redesign the quadrangle and include a new amphitheater as an “informal venue” for students and performances, Barton said.
Owen Vaccaro ’28, co-czar of the Inter Galactic Community of A Cappella at Brown University, expressed excitement for the amphitheater as a new performance space for students.
“I think just the nature of amphitheaters is very communal (and) very inviting to people,” he said. “Accessibility has been an issue for IGCAC in the past, so I’m hoping that with the new amphitheater we can assuage some of those problems.”
Ian Ritter is a senior staff writer for university news. A junior studying chemistry, he covers the graduate schools & students and admissions & financial aid beats. When he isn’t at The Herald or exploding lab experiments, you can find him playing the clarinet, watching the Mets or eating Ratty carrot cake.
