The Arts Campus in Playhouse Square

Located in downtown Cleveland's Playhouse Square district, Cleveland State University's Arts Campus places students within one of the nation's most active arts and entertainment environments. Surrounded by theaters, performance venues, public art, media organizations, and a constant flow of cultural activity, students experience the arts as part of daily life both inside and outside the classroom.

Art & Design students learn in studio, classroom, and exhibition spaces designed to support both creative practice and interdisciplinary collaboration. The Arts Campus is also home to the future Galleries at East 13th Street Powered by CSU, a new exhibition and performance venue currently in development on the first floor of the Theatre & Arts Building.

Most Art & Design facilities are located on Cleveland State’s Arts Campus in Playhouse Square, placing students within Cleveland’s vibrant arts and cultural district. Specialized Sculpture and Ceramics studios are also located elsewhere on CSU’s main campus.

Theatre & Arts Building (TA)

• Two updated Mac labs (one for photo and one for design) each with 20 computers,large format printers, and the latest Adobe and design software
• Light-filled, spacious studios for drawing and painting
• Photography darkroom and lighting studio
• Multiple intaglio, relief, and lithography presses, as well as silk screen printmaking studios
• Sculpture studio (located in CM) is fully equipped for wood and metal fabrication, bronze casting, and ceramics
• Lecture classrooms, critique spaces, and lounges

TA Student Amenities

The Arts Campus includes student lounges, study spaces, and convenient access to dining and other campus amenities that support day-to-day student life, including restaurants, coffee shops, and shared gathering spaces throughout the surrounding Playhouse Square neighborhood.

Art & Design students access studio spaces using their CSU ID swipe card, with secure late-night access to studios—giving them the flexibility to develop their work beyond scheduled class hours.

Lounges and Food: The Arts Campus houses multiple student lounges with vending and access to a refrigerator and microwave. 

Dining & Neighborhood Amenities: More than a dozen restaurants and coffee shops are within walking distance of the Theatre & Arts Building, and Heinen’s grocery store and CVS are located just a few blocks west.

Accessibility & Student Support:

The Arts Campus and Theatre & Arts Building are fully accessible, with accessible entrances, elevators, classrooms, and student facilities. Cleveland State provides a range of support services for students, including the Office of Disability Services, the Student Resource Center, and Student Belonging & Success.

• Office of Disability Services
• Student Resource Center
• Student Belonging & Success

Getting to the Arts Campus: 

The Arts Campus is easily accessible by car, public transportation, and on foot from downtown Cleveland, with nearby parking options and convenient access to the city’s transit network.

• The WG Garage (Green Permit) on E 17th St. is the closest CSU-maintained garage to the Theatre & Arts Building.
• There are several daily-pay surface lots surrounding the building. Visit the Parking Services website for more information about parking locations and permits.
• Greater Cleveland RTA buses and rapid trains are a great way to get around Cleveland. The RTA and Laketran lines are accessible directly north of the building on Chester. An RTA Healthline stop is south of the building on Euclid.
   

An Arts Campus with Character

Theatre & Arts Building History

Art and Design classrooms are located in the CSU Arts Campus, in the Theatre & Arts Building, formerly the Middough Building. Built in 1912, the historic building was designed by the prominent Cleveland architectural firm Knox & Elliot. The structure was originally built as the Wigmore Coliseum, an exhibition hall, and the Euclid Square Garage, the "largest in the world." 

The Euclid Square Garage was a luxury parking garage, with lounges for guests and chauffeurs, where people could park their cars and have them serviced while they shopped and dined along Euclid Avenue.

The Wigmore Coliseum held several prominent events, including The Cleveland Electrical Exposition (1914), the Cleveland Auto Show (1915), and the first Cleveland Flower Show (1919). 

An additional three stories, also designed by Knox & Elliot, were added to the building in 1923, housing a bowling alley and pool hall. In the 1950's the United States Navy Finance Center occupied the building. In the 1980's the fifth floor was the 13th Street Racquet Club.

In 2013, CSU restored the street-level facade to its original 1912 exterior, featuring large, plate-glass windows.