Guthrie Theater
Three-stage theatre by Jean Nouvel above the Mississippi, with a cantilevered Endless Bridge.
The Guthrie Theater was founded in 1963 by the director Tyrone Guthrie, Oliver Rea and Peter Zeisler as a resident classical company away from New York, and its first home beside the Walker Art Center was designed by Ralph Rapson. In 2006 the company moved to a purpose-built theatre in the Mill District on the west bank of the Mississippi, designed by the French architect Jean Nouvel and clad in deep blue metal. The old building was demolished the same year.
The complex contains three auditoriums: the Wurtele Thrust Stage, which continues the open thrust form of the 1963 theatre, the McGuire Proscenium Stage and the flexible Dowling Studio. Its best-known feature is the Endless Bridge, a cantilevered public walkway projecting towards the river and overlooking St Anthony Falls and the ruins of the flour mills. Lobbies and viewing platforms may be visited without a ticket during building hours, and backstage tours are offered.
Highlights
- Endless Bridge, a cantilevered walkway with views over the Mississippi
- Wurtele Thrust Stage, continuing the 1963 open thrust design
- Deep blue Jean Nouvel building in the historic Mill District
- Annual production of A Christmas Carol, staged since 1975
