About us

The Boston Center for the Arts (BCA) is a nonprofit performing and visual arts complex located in Boston's South End, the largest historic district in the United States. As a creative home for artists and an arts destination for audiences, the BCA builds a connection between the arts and the city's diverse community.

History of the BCA

In the late 1960s, the Boston Redevelopment Authority purchased a 4-acre parcel of historic land in Boston's South End to create an art center, and designated the BCA as its developer. The land included the Cyclorama, the BCA's most renowned space, which had been built in 1884 to house a cycloramic painting of the Battle of Gettysburg.

The BCA became an affordable space for working artists, and as well as a fringe theater venue. The BCA Gallery, originally formed to show work by BCA studio artists, became the Mills Gallery. The BCA Plaza Theatres were joined, in 2004, by the two new theaters at the Calderwood Pavilion.

Mission:
The Boston Center for the Arts (BCA) is a not-for-profit performing and visual arts campus that supports working artists to create, perform and exhibit new works; develops new audiences; and connects the arts to community.