This June, the Rotunda will see its 100th birthday — and over the last 100 years it has witnessed changing relationships between Penn and West Philadelphia.
The Rotunda — an arts and culture community venue at 4014 Walnut St. — was built June 4, 1911 as a house of worship for the First Church of Christ Scientist, director Gina Renzi said.
Penn students began to use the Rotunda in the 1990s as a way to interact with the West Philadelphia community through theater, Renzi said, adding that Penn proceeded to purchase the building in 1995.
The original building was designed by the Carrère and Hastings firm in the Paris-based
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