The Norton Center for the Arts is home to Centre College’s annual Norton Center performing arts season of professional touring presentations. It is also the primary venue on campus for music and theatrical productions, lectures and other convocations and live student entertainment. The Norton Center for the Arts is an internationally recognized performing arts center with state of the art facilities. The Center hosts a world-class performing arts series and serves as a focal point for the College’s academic programs in dramatic arts and music. Centre College is often the place where important debates and political forums occur. In 2000 and 2012, the College was the home of the Vice-Presidental debate. Designed by architect William Wesley Peters of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, the Norton Center originally opened in 1973 as the Centre College Regional Arts Center. Within the 85,000 square foot complex are stunning performance and exhibition spaces as well as exceptional academic facilities for art, music, and drama. The Center’s two theatres have drawn consistent praise from performers and audiences alike. The Norton Center for the Arts 1973 Opening Night Gala featured Verdi’s “OTELLO.” The first season featured the Krasnayarsk Dance Company of Siberia and the World premiere of the symphonic work “The City” by Rod McKuen. Since then the Center has helped make Danville a “powerhouse palace of culture” (Louisville Courier Journal).