Fox Tucson Theatre lands $5M naming rights deal
The Fox Tucson Theatre announced a $5 million naming rights deal with Hughes Federal Credit Union on June 4, the largest single gift in the theater's $26.6 million campaign to expand into a full performing arts complex by 2030.
The Fox Tucson Theatre announced a $5 million naming rights deal with Hughes Federal Credit Union on June 4, the largest single contribution to date in the theater's campaign to expand into a full performing arts complex.
The project is expected to be completed and open by 2030, coinciding with the theater's centennial. The new event center will allow the theater to host a wider range of events, including weddings, educational programming and corporate or nonprofit events.
The center will include a grand lobby and bar for pre- and post-show events and receptions, a catering kitchen, spaces for community programming, a rooftop terrace, additional restrooms and full ADA accessibility, with public elevators and curbside drop-off.
It will also include a second-floor performance space for youth performances, local artists and more intimate touring performances.
The Fox Tucson Theatre's Kids in the Theatre program brings 15,000 young people to the theater annually through school matinees, family shows, summer camps and autism-friendly events. The program also partners with community organizations to provide free tickets to Title I schools, teachers and caregivers.
Fox leadership said the new event center's dedicated youth space will allow them to expand partnerships with school districts and nonprofit organizations.
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The entrance for the event center will be located along Stone Avenue and include a curbside drop-off area in front.
Fox Tucson Theatre Executive Director Bonnie Schock noted the theater's status as a community asset, saying it serves as a model for creativity in the city. She said the expansion will increase accessibility, opportunity and economic activity.
"This extraordinary commitment is an investment in Tucson's future in education and gives tourism, accessibility, economic development in community gathering space, in togetherness and well-being and in the arts that have enriched all of our lives," Schock said. "The Hughes Center at the Fox will serve as the stone album entrance for an expanded performing arts complex integrated with the beloved historical theatre."
Schock said both the Fox and Hughes Federal Credit Union have a history of showing up for the community.
Hughes Chief Experience Officer Elisa Ross pointed to the credit union's efforts to support initiatives including youth education and science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics programming.
"The Fox's mission and our mission align perfectly, representing the same goals in different forms," Ross said. "And research backs this up. Children who participate in the arts programs are measurably more likely to stay engaged in school, stay connected to their communities and face fewer significant challenges. That's not a feel-good statistic, that's an outcome."
Ross said that as a credit union, Hughes answers to its members rather than stockholders, and that she believed those members would support an investment that makes Tucson more vibrant.
Ross expressed hope that the opportunities the event center will create for families and performers will expand far beyond the 10-year naming rights deal.
This is the first time a Tucson performing arts facility has received a corporate naming.
The event center will join the Fox Tucson Theatre as part of a broader Fox Tucson Performing Arts Complex, with the only physical change to the historic theater being the addition of doorways connecting the two spaces, preserving its status on the National Register of Historic Places.
Fox leadership predicts that when completed, the performing arts center will see 150,000 guests and generate $18 million in annual revenue.
Hughes' $5 million contribution is the largest single gift in the Fox Tucson Theatre's $26.6 million campaign, which organizers said has reached the halfway point.
Hughes Federal Credit Union is challenging community members to make $100,000 donations or pledges before the end of the year to help support a 2028 groundbreaking.
Ian Stash is University of Arizona alum and freelance journalist in Tucson. Contact him at ianjgs16@gmail.com.
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