About Us

Mission: The Collins Center for the Arts is the anchor for the performing arts at the University of Maine, and supports the University’s overall mission of teaching, research, and service. The CCA serves as a cultural resource for the region, and offers a broad and exceptional selection of programming designed to enrich, educate, and entertain.

Located on the University of Maine campus, the Richard R. and Anne A. Collins Center for the Arts (CCA) has been the cultural centerpiece of eastern and northern Maine since it opened on September 24, 1986. 

Originally named the Maine Center for the Arts, the center continues to present performances in a wide variety of art forms and cultures, appealing to diverse interests and age groups. Each season brings a wide variety of events, including Broadway tours, nationally-known comedians, legendary concert performers, well-known dance troupes, live theatre, and everything in between. The 1,435-seat Hutchins Concert Hall provides the perfect venue to see your favorite events.

In addition to presenting some of the world’s most exciting live events in our Mainstage Series, the Collins Center allows you to get up close and personal with some of history’s most prolific instrumental and vocal music in our Chamber Music Series, primarily presented in the intimate Minsky Recital Hall.

The CCA has one of the largest broadcast screens in the State of Maine, where we proudly present two thrilling series: The Met: Live in HD and National Theatre Live. The Metropolitan Opera’s Peabody and Emmy Award-winning series The Met: Live in HD provides a way for people to experience thrilling live opera transmissions, special interviews, and behind-the-scenes features. NT Live is the National Theatre’s groundbreaking project to broadcast the best of British theatre recorded live from the London stage. Additionally, we regularly show popular, independent, and documentary films in partnership with organizations throughout the country.

The CCA is proud to be the home of the Bangor Symphony Orchestra, one of the oldest, continually-operating community orchestras in the nation. Each year, the Symphony performs the Nutcracker, and other selections for thousands of fans.

The Collins Center is also the perfect place to see arts education in action with symphonic, jazz and vocal concerts performed by music students from the University of Maine School of Performing Arts.

Annually, more than 100,000 people visit the Collins Center for the Arts for a variety of events. Whatever your interest, we have something for you!

These are the types of events we host:

  • New Student Orientation
  • Private Rentals
  • Receptions
  • Seminars
  • Workshops
  • High School Graduations
  • Open Houses
  • William S. Cohen Lecture Series
  • Community Performances
  • Award Ceremonies
  • Statewide Conferences
  • Master Classes
  • Maine Summer Youth Music (MSYM)
  • All State Music Festivals
  • Weekly Movie Series
  • Greek Life Events
  • Bangor Symphony Orchestra Concerts
  • School of Performing Arts Concerts
  • Memorial Services
  • Chamber Music Concerts
  • Metropolitan Opera Series
  • Student Engagement Events
  • National Theatre of London (NT Live)
  • International Dance Festival
  • Student Concerts
  • Rallies
  • Fundraising Events
  • Distinguished Lectures