13th and Douglas Streets
Omaha, Nebraska  68102

A product of the sensational participation and generous support of the community, the Holland Performing Arts Center is a testament to Omaha’s legacy for civic leadership and commitment to the arts.

Opened in October 2005, the Holland Performing Arts Center is a true cultural landmark. Built with the overwhelming support and generosity of the Omaha community, the Holland Center marks the collaboration of a world-class team of architects, designers, and acousticians, tasked with creating a performing arts venue to be envied anywhere. Capable of hosting various forms of entertainment, the Holland Center specializes in events requiring a more acoustical environment, including performances by the Omaha Symphony.

Performance spaces include the 2,000-seat Peter Kiewit Concert Hall, flexible 400-seat Suzanne and Walter Scott Recital Hall, and a semi-enclosed outdoor performance and event garden able to accommodate 1,000 people.

The Peter Kiewit Concert Hall is a classical “shoebox” configuration, seating 1,000 at the orchestra level, 400 on the First Tier, and 600 on the Second Tier. Ample wood and plaster surfacing promote an ambience of warmth and intimacy throughout. Three stage lifts carry a series of moveable platforms that accommodate various types of presentations from a solo performer to a large orchestra. The exterior of the concert hall is clad in stone and capped by an illuminated glass lantern, or “beacon of light,” which fills the hall with natural light during the day.

The 400-seat Suzanne and Walter Scott Recital Hall is a flexible “black box” space and, similar to the concert hall, exhibits a feeling of warmth and intimacy. This hall can also be used as a banquet or rehearsal space.

Outside, a transparent, street-level lobby and covered arrival plaza create a visual connection between Omaha’s Gene Leahy Mall and the Holland Center courtyard, functioning as a transitional space for ticketing, patron services, food services, and retail. A grand staircase overlooking the courtyard leads to the venue’s upper-level main lobby and provides access to both the concert and recital halls.

To develop this landmark facility, the Omaha Performing Arts board of directors selected a first-class design team with national and international reputations and successful experience in other performing arts facilities. The Holland Performing Arts Center design team was led by the Omaha-based architectural firm HDR in collaboration with Polshek Partnership Architects (New York). They were joined by acoustic consultants Kirkegaard Associates (Chicago), and theater consultants Fisher Dachs Associates (New York).

To review "best practices" and gain insights from other projects, the Omaha Performing Arts board of directors and design team toured a variety of performing arts centers and concert halls throughout the United States and Europe. Initial inspiration for the performing arts center came from the legendary Musikverein, in Vienna, Austria. Elevated above ground, the Musikverein creates the sensation that concertgoers are “rising to the occasion” as they ascend into the performance space. The Austrian hall is also flanked by rows of windows at the ceiling, allowing natural light to enter the space. Each of these characteristics was incorporated into the Omaha project. Yet the key legacy of the Musikverein has been its legendary acoustics, and it was this feature that became the guiding design principle for the Holland Performing Arts Center.