Give Beyond the Classroom

Mason is a destination for artists, and lovers of the arts, in Washington, D.C., Northern Virginia and Maryland.

Be Surrounded by Sound
Be Surrounded by Sound

Japanese ensemble TAO combines music and dance to reflect Japanese tradition, while also reflecting Korean, Maori, and Indonesian influences. The group performed at the Center for the Arts.

Support the Performing Arts Centers

Each year, more than 200,000 audience members attend 60 performances at the Center for the Arts on the Fairfax Campus and the Hylton Performing Arts Center in Prince William County, featuring world-renowned symphony, ballet, opera, theater and dance companies. Private funding ensures performances remain vibrant and affordable today and for future generations.

Support the Green Machine Ensembles

The Green Machine Ensembles are the Athletic Bands and Campus Spirit Ensembles of George Mason University. The Ensembles consist of students from a wide-variety of majors from across the University. They also boast the number one pep band in the nation, according to the NCAA. This organization provides a unique link between the arts and athletics, campus and the community and is the physical embodiment of spirit at George Mason University. To learn more, email Bobby Lacy II, Associate Director, Green Machine Ensembles.

Young Alumni Commissioning Project

George Mason University’s College of Visual and Performing Arts aims to continue supporting the work of its recent alumni through the Young Alumni Commissioning Project. With the goal of providing crucial support for our alumni’s artistic development, one recent CVPA alum will be commissioned to create a new artistic work.

Support the Mason Community Arts Academy

As the College of Visual and Performing Arts' non-degree community outreach arm, private funding for the Mason Community Arts Academy supports individual and group arts instruction for 3,000 community members of all skill levels, artistic abilities and socio-economic backgrounds. Courses are taught by our distinguished faculty and graduate-level arts education students in the evening, after school and in summer intensive settings. The Academy's Instruments in the Attic program transforms forgotten musical instruments into treasures for Mason Music Education majors and the public school students they teach in a suite of in-school programs.

Capital Needs

Several of the College of Visual and Performing Arts' physical assets – including the Center for the Arts – are sound, but aging. Renovation will enhance their capabilities and restore their competitive position. Supporters made it possible for Harris Theatre to undergo renovation, resulting in an expanded lobby featuring dedicated restrooms and an updated ticket office. Performers and crew can now enjoy a refinished backstage including dressing rooms and green room, and all will appreciate upgrades to the heating and ventilation system and state-of-the-art theatrical lighting and audio. The venue reopened in 2022.

Responding to demonstrated demand, the Hylton Performing Arts Center opened a new Education Wing in 2019.

For more information, email Susan Graziano, Director of Development, Fairfax Programs, or call 703-993-4188; or email Carolyn Hays, Director of Development, Hylton Performing Arts Center or call 703-993-4502.