By: Andrea Azzo, Public Information Specialist
Shepard High School’s new theater is being built, and construction on the new field house is scheduled to begin in the spring.
The 10,800-square-foot theater will be available for presentations in August 2025, with performances ready soon after that. The theater will hold 375 audience seats and will include three dressing rooms, a scene shop, and an orchestra pit.
You can watch a live stream of crews working on the theater, courtesy of Pepper Construction.
“The theater is a centerpiece at Shepard High School,” said Principal Dr. Timothy Baker. “The additional seating will benefit the entire school community. This space is used for staff and class meetings, student performances, preschool graduation, community performances and much more. The new theater will definitely be a featured space. We have a lot to be proud of here at Shepard High School.”
The field house construction will begin in May 2025 and is expected to be complete in August 2026. The field house will be about 23,500-square-feet with a capacity of about 3,400 people. It will include a weight room with a capacity of about 84 people and a parking lot that will have space for 93 cars.
Construction at Shepard began in May 2024 as part of a multimillion-dollar capital project in Community High School District 218 that the Board of Education approved in September 2023.
“This is a wonderful opportunity for our students,” said Superintendent Dr. Josh Barron. “These improvements will blend our past architecture into our new spaces, modernizing our theaters, courts, and fields to become inclusive facilities that will foster more equity and success. Some have asked why not us? Now, we can say we’ve arrived.”
JP Architects has provided renderings of what the field house and theater will look like when construction is complete. The firm has also been providing video updates on the project. CHSD218 will provide updates as they become available.