Downtown’s new Lynn Wyatt Square for the Performing Arts opens to the public this weekend

The $26.5 million Lynn Wyatt Square for the Performing Arts, a reimagined green space and focal point of Houston’s downtown Theater District, officially opens to the public on Friday, September 22, 2023.

During opening weekend, the park will host free lawn games and live entertainment, including an interactive experience called “Bees” created by the Australia-based Polyglot Theatre.

Bordered by Jones Hall, Alley Theatre, and Bayou Place—and adjacent to the Wortham Theater Center and only a few blocks away from the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts—Lynn Wyatt Square will aim to enhance the experience of patrons and pedestrians in downtown Houston, as well as contribute to the cultural landscape. The new square features a performance lawn for free concerts and programs, a cascading fountain, gardens, trees, lighting and sound elements, a space for a future restaurant, and mini murals on traffic boxes created by Anat Ronen and Jessica Guerra (Guerra Girl).

“This is a game changer for downtown Houston. I am so excited to see this square come to life as a public space that connects the arts and, more importantly, connects people to the arts,” said Mayor Sylvester Turner in a statement.

While owned by the city, Lynn Wyatt Square is managed by Houston First Corporation, which will maintain and operate the park, as well as oversee its year-round programming in collaboration with local arts partners and stakeholders, according to a press release.

Named after philanthropist Lynn Wyatt, who announced a donation of $10 million toward the project in 2019, the Square is a major renovation and renaming of the former Jones Plaza, which was constructed in 1966.

“I love Houston, I love the arts and I absolutely love this beautiful Square. I am thrilled to support the team bringing people and the arts together in the heart of downtown,” said Wyatt in a statement. “I look forward to all the good this Square will do now and in the future for the people of this dynamic city and our world-class performing arts community.”

In addition to Wyatt’s donation, the Downtown Redevelopment Authority committed $10 million; Houston First Corporation committed $5 million; and additional funding was contributed by The Elkins Foundation, The Cullen Foundation, The Fondren Foundation, The Wortham Foundation, The Herzstein Foundation, Robert and Janice McNair Foundation, Vivian L. Smith Foundation, and M.D. Anderson Foundation. The project’s funding is approximately 45% private and 55% public, according to Houston First.

As Lynn Wyatt Square opens, the city’s 2023-2024 downtown performing arts season is underway—this weekend alone, Alley Theater offers its season-opening production, American Mariachi; Houston Ballet is in production with Tutu at the Wortham Center; Houston Symphony presents Broadway Blockbuster with Norm Lewis at Jones Hall; and at the Hobby Center, Ars Lyrica Houston performs the concert Fallen Angels and Performing Arts Houston presents an Evening with Isaac Mizrahi.

“Lynn Wyatt Square is such an important addition to the landscape of Houston. This project, many years in the making, shows what is possible when private philanthropy, municipal partners, and the arts join together in a shared vision,” said Hillary Hart, Chair of Theater District Houston and Executive Director of Theatre Under The Stars, in an email to Houston Arts Journal.

“Located in the heart of the Theater District it creates the perfect place for people who love the arts to connect, and those new to Houston’s thriving arts scene will be able to discover the work of the incredibly talented artists who are an integral part of this community,” said Hart.