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New giving opportunities have been announced for the Clayton Center for the Arts currently under construction on the Maryville College campus.

While spaces in and around the Clayton Center are still available for naming (including the outdoor plaza, the instrumental rehearsal hall and several dressing rooms and practice rooms), naming opportunities for smaller features of the facility have been decided, according to Robert Hutchens, executive director of the Clayton Center.

Seats in the main performance hall may be named for anyone the donor chooses. Costs are $2,000 per seat.

Donors may also "purchase" pavers that will be installed in the outdoor plaza. With two lines of text and 14 letters/spaces per line, pavers may be named for anyone the donor chooses. Pavers are $1,000 each but if named for a student, child or grandchild under the age of 18, the discounted price is $250 each. Children's pavers will be laid in a special section in the plaza.

Hutchens said the new naming opportunities not only allow more people to financially support the construction, but they serve as important symbols of the project.

"Buying a paver or a seat allows people literally to become part of the building. It's symbolic of the connection we hope people are going to feel to the Clayton Center for the Arts," he said.

Opportunities to donate toward VIP benefactor benefits have also been announced. Benefits include preferred seating tickets, parking and invitations to special VIP events.

"The VIP benefits are an ongoing way of saying 'thank you' to the people for their financial support. A perk for all our VIPs is first choice for preferred seating before tickets go on sale to the general public. And all VIPs are named on donor plaques," Hutchens explained.

Corporations and businesses are encouraged to join the campaign for the Clayton Center for the Arts, as well, and Hutchens pointed out that opportunities also exist for them to sponsor entertainment and programming in the facility.

"Corporate sponsorships are primarily gifts that underwrite a particular performance so that we can keep ticket prices as low as possible," he said. "Such sponsorships also allow us to bring in the most exciting artists around. They are true gifts to the community."

Located on the campus of Maryville College and constructed through a partnership of the College, the cities of Maryville and Alcoa, and state and federal governments, the Clayton Center for the Arts will celebrate the art and culture of the Appalachian region by serving as a venue for local musicians, performers and artists.

Its design will also accommodate plays and musicals, concerts by touring musicians and orchestras, traveling art exhibits, film series, children's plays and presentations by nationally recognized speakers.

The grand opening of the Clayton Center for the Arts is scheduled for Spring 2010.

For giving opportunity details and forms, visit www.claytonartscenter.org. Click on the "Fundraising & Giving" button to go to a page with downloadable forms.

For information about corporate sponsorships of the Clayton Center, call Hutchens at 981-8264.