Hall Prepares for Transformation

By Kate Hartig

Staff Writer

When Benjamin and Maxine Swalin wandered around the UNC campus for the first time in 1935, they were awe-struck by Memorial Hall, with its large Grecian pillars facing Cameron Avenue.

"It was like seeing a little part of Greece right on campus," Swalin said. "It was the building that partly caused us to want to stay here; it looked so dignified sitting there."

Memorial Hall is dedicated to to former N.C. Governor and UNC President David Lowry Swain, and also to the UNC students who died in the Civil War. While the hall is home to hundreds of remembrance plaques and decades of history, it houses countless memories for many people.

Especially for Maxine Swalin. The Swalins directed and developed the N.C. Symphony into a full orchestra that began travelling around the state performing concerts for all ages in 1944. Her husband conducted the N.C. Symphony for 33 years.

They considered Chapel Hill a "home" for the symphony in the beginning, playing annually at Memorial Hall.

Swalin remembers when she used to bring a wash basin and towels to N.C. Symphony shows at Memorial Hall so performers could wash their hands backstage. She said she would try very hard to make the performers as comfortable as possible.

She also remembers a time when her husband, the conductor, was greeted on-stage by a visitor during a performance in 1945.

"We generally played in May, and since the hall was un-air-conditioned, all of the windows and doors were open," Swalin said. "A dog came in and went up on stage, and after standing on the stage spellbound by a solo, he sniffed around my husband's shoes and left the stage. That dog was famous."

In February of 2002, renovations will begin at Memorial Hall, and are scheduled to last 18 to 24 months. While keeping the historic character and the style of the building located off Cameron Avenue in the historic part of campus, the transformation includes a new stage, twice the size of the present one; expanded lobby space and back-stage space; as well as a new amplification system and sound shell.

Swalin has seen Memorial Hall evolve over the years, but she has also seen it deteriorate. The building that stands today was completed in 1931, and over the last 70 years the hall has been repaired but never completely renovated. The original Memorial Hall was built in 1885, but condemned in 1929 due to safety problems and its size, which was too small for the growing student body.

Memorial Hall is not just being renovated according to those involved with the project, it is being transformed into a modern-day facility, with state-of-the-art equipment and technology.

"In the last 20 years, the place has really eroded," said Jim Heavner, co-chair of the Memorial Hall Transformation campaign. "This building is something that will transform the arts in this community."

Heavner, a class of `61 graduate, remembers Memorial Hall as the place where he heard Martin Luther King Jr. and George Wallace speak, and Louis Armstrong play.

"We would wear dinner jackets and formal attire to Memorial Hall back in those days," Heavner said. "We would always hope it was going to be a cool fall or spring day."

So a year ago, when Heavner and his wife, Pam, a class of `78 graduate, were asked to head up a funding campaign for renovations to Memorial Hall, they gladly accepted.

"When we were asked to do this, it immediately stirred great memories back to our student times," Heavner said. "And everywhere we go to talk to people about this project, Memorial Hall instantly stirs a smile."

The higher-education bond referendum that passed last November allotted $9 million to Memorial Hall renovation. The state also gave $1 million to the project, leaving $5 million still needed to fund the rest of the project.

The Heavners, along with the University and close to 40 committee members, have already raised over $3 million through private donations and through the seat campaign, in which seat plaques are being sold for $5,000 a piece.

Over 100 plaques have been sold, many of which are dedicated to alumni and parents.

A September event featuring Bill Cosby will celebrate the transformation and serve as a fund-raiser for the renovation.

"Even in 1931, the hall was built partly with donations," said Georgeann Bissett, campaign director for the Memorial Hall Transformation. "And those plaques are part of its wonderful heritage."

Bissett said the older plaques seen in Memorial Hall will remain a part of the transformation.

The main goal behind the transformation is to create a new Memorial Hall with year-round capabilities for all kinds of performances.

"Our goal is to have our pick of any performance we want," said Heavner. "We want performers to want to come to Chapel Hill."

On Swalin's 98th birthday, she expressed just how much the Memorial Hall Transformation means to her.

"On my birthday, I said that it would mean more to me if instead of presents, people would turn it into a contribution to the renovation fund."

Kate Hartig can be reached at Hartigk@aol.com.