Geneva’s Smith Center for the Arts builds community and attracts big-name musicians 

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In a lot of ways, Geneva is the most ideally located destination in the Finger Lakes: roughly halfway between Rochester and Syracuse, at the northmost point of Seneca Lake, and conveniently positioned near the thruway. It’s a small city that boasts an intriguing food and beverage scene featuring farm-to-table restaurants like FLX Table and breweries such as Twisted Rail, Climbing Bines, and Big aLICe Brewing.

Geneva is also home to The Smith Center for the Arts, or The Smith, a historical, beloved venue more commonly known as the Smith Opera House. Built in 1894, The Smith served as a moviehouse for most of its existence until an ambitious renovation project completed in 2001 returned the building to its 1930s art deco grandeur.

The Smith has hosted a plethora of top-flight musicians over the years, from rock legends Bruce Springsteen and Stevie Ray Vaughan to the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra and jazz great Pat Metheny.

The Smith’s executive director Susan Monagan — who previously worked as a theater arts management professor at Ithaca College and was a board member at the State Theatre in Ithaca — said hosting a wide range of inclusive performances is a top priority.

“We are looking at ‘How do we make this a community space? How do we bring as many different kinds of people through the doors as possible?’” said Monagan. “‘How do we get grants to help make that happen so that we're subsidizing ticket prices?’”
Currently, The Smith Center for the Arts hosts a variety of concerts, dance performances, children’s programming, and community events for celebrations like FLX Pride and Hispanic Heritage Month. The Smith Center for the Arts also has partnerships with the Geneva Music Festival and the National Women’s Hall of Fame, which will host its 2023 Induction Ceremony at the venue on September 30.

Events at The Smith are privately hosted through rental, presented directly by the venue, or put on by concert promoters and organizations with whom the venue has longstanding relationships. Recent shows featuring 1950s vocal group The Platters and classic rock band Hot Tuna were presented by The Smith itself, while concerts like the July 14 concert featuring folk music icon Judy Collins are put on by the regional concert promotion company DSP Shows, which is based in Ithaca.

DSP Shows President Dan Smalls said it's a beautiful room.

“And in summer, it's kind of like the northern version of Ithaca on the next lake over,” he added.
Over the years, DSP Shows has brought artists such as country singer-songwriter Lyle Lovett, indie rock bands Modest Mouse and The Decemberists, folk rock legend Stephen Stills, and blues guitarist Robert Cray to The Smith.

Smalls has worked with Monagan since 2008, when they helped to create State Theatre of Ithaca, Inc., a nonprofit organization started to keep the city’s historical State Theatre in business. Monagan then became one of the nonprofit’s first board members.

Although DSP Shows had presented concerts at The Smith Center for the Arts prior to Monagan’s tenure as executive director, Smalls said their past work together led to greater collaboration between the two organizations. Smalls said. The Smith’s nonprofit status and focus on community enrichment balances well with DSP Shows’ concert offerings.

“It's a really good partnership in that way — they have a wonderful kids program, and some wonderful classics, and we can round that out with the contemporary comedy and music that we're known for doing in the region.”

Daniel J. Kushner is an arts writer at CITY. He can be reached at [email protected].