FAQ's
Plano Symphony’s move to the new Robinson Fine Arts Center.
The rationale for the move
The PSO has long aspired to have a permanent home and the Robinson Fine Arts Center is an answer to that dream.
“We are so grateful to have performed for two decades at the beautiful Eisemann Center for the Performing Arts,” said Maestro Héctor Guzmán. “Having a concert hall to call our home has been a dream of mine since we began this musical journey 40 years ago. The Robinson has excellent acoustics and will help the PSO enhance its sound as we will get to rehearse and perform in the same hall the entire season. Our orchestra has grown to the point where a permanent home is the natural progression of our growth and future aspirations.”
“The Board of Directors of the PSO sees this move to the Robinson Fine Arts Center as part of our long-term strategic plan,” said Brenda Mills, President. “The Robinson will help solidify our musical reputation as one of the leading orchestras in the region.”
“The Robinson Fine Arts Center is named after longtime PSO supporters and Board members Lynore and Robbie Robinson whose vision was for Plano to be home to a state-of-the-art theatre/concert hall that would rival anything in the country,” said Greg Patterson. “When the Plano Independent School District opened the Center this year, the PSO was one of the first professional arts organizations approached to become a key community partner.”
The PSO has just completed an intensive strategic planning process and moving to a more permanent facility that is built for a symphony orchestra is a key pillar of that plan. This will allow us to produce more complex programming, commission more unique pieces for the orchestra, and, in time, expand our seasons to offer more concerts.
The auditorium and facilities
The hall is located at 1800 Alma Drive, Plano, TX 75075, at the SE corner of Park and Alma Roads and is fully open for business. The Plano Symphony has held a Family Series concert at the hall and recently held the Collin County Young Artist Competition at the facilities. The PSO will perform the entire 2024/2025 subscription series at the Robinson, beginning with our Opening Night concert on September 28, 2024.
The concert hall holds approximately 1,500 seats and has a stage large enough to accommodate our full orchestra. The hall consists of three forward sections and three back sections on the ground floor, and three sections in the balcony. The balcony can be accessed by stairwells or by elevator. Each level has several bathrooms and are ADA accessible. There is an art gallery and a black box theater located near the large main lobby area.
As with our concerts at the Eisemann Center and elsewhere, the PSO staff will run the concerts in conjunction with the Robinson full-time staff. However, as we are tenants in the building we must adhere to and abide by all PISD Robinson Fine Arts Center rules and regulations.
The PSO will have our mobile box office and will call services and at each concert. Concessions will be offered during intermission, however alcoholic beverages are prohibited due to Texas state law, and food and drink are not allowed in the seating area.
Parking
Parking at the Robinson Fine Arts Center is free. There are approximately 600 uncovered parking spaces in the combined lots surrounding the hall. All the spaces are a very short walk to the main entrance of the hall. Valet parking will be available for Virtuoso Society members. ADA parking spaces are available in each lot area. There is overflow parking available in an adjacent parking lot should that be necessary. All parking is outdoor.
Tickets and seating
While the structure and general location of seats in the Robinson are very similar to the Eisemann, this move has afforded us the chance to change our seating and pricing structure for subscription packages. We have reduced the number of price sections from ten to six. PSO staff leadership, in consultation with Maestro Héctor Guzmán, and the Marketing Committee of the PSO Board, set new ticket prices to correspond with the best seating locations at the Robinson.
These new sections and new pricing may result in some subscribers paying more to remain in a section like where they are seated at the Eisemann, and some subscribers will actually pay less to do so. For this reason, the PSO will not be saving specific seats in your account and will not be sending out renewal notices as we have in the past. The new hall will require new seat selections for everyone.
Subscribers will be sent a packet in February with a new season brochure, more information on the Robinson Fine Arts Center, a seating map, and new pricing structure. As always, subscribers will be offered the chance to select their seats prior to the public.
We will be holding an open house for subscribers to come to the Robinson and tour the facility on March 2, 2024. PSO Box Office staff will be on hand to answer any questions and to book subscriptions.
There are wheelchair accessible seats in several locations of the hall.
The PSO will be converting to primarily electronic tickets next season, which has become the norm for most arts and entertainment organizations. Physical tickets can be mailed upon specific request at time of purchase.
PISD
The Plano Independent School District owns and fully staffs the building. The Plano Symphony is a tenant in the hall just as it was at the Eisemann Center. The PSO is considered a key community partner of the PISD. The Plano Symphony will remain in its current executive offices and has no plans to move any staff to the Robinson.
The expectation is that the Robinson Fine Arts Center will be the permanent home for the PSO’s subscription concerts. All the dates for the 2024/2025 subscription series concerts have been secured including all our music education programs. All the artists for our 2024/2025 season have been contracted by our executive director and a memo of understanding signed with PISD for the rental of the Robinson Fine Arts Center.
