Mesa, Arizona - The Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts' long awaited makeover is under way. Scottsdale, the owner of the cultural facility, is funding the $14 million project.

It's been roughly 25 years since any work has been done to the 35-year-old building, said the center's vice president and director Kathy Hotchner. The last major renovation was the addition of the mezzanine gallery.

The center's patrons can expect a "more intimate theatre experience," she said, and will have a comfortable place to mingle before and after shows at a new cafe and wine bar.

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Since March, workers have been preparing for the first phase of construction, which will encompass a number of major upgrades including a new floor, box office and cafe in the atrium lobby.

Construction on the first phase is expected to be complete by fall.

By July, the second phase will begin with a yearlong overhaul of the center's 838-seat Virginia G. Piper Theatre.

The theatre will gain about 50 seats, feature box seats along the side walls and have improved accessibility for the disabled.

Despite the construction, Hotchner said the center will still be open for business.

The center's smaller 136-seat theatre will continue offering performances, including a new "Catechism" show this fall that takes a look at love, marriage and death, said Hotchner. Cabaret acts are also expected to debut this fall in the center's atrium.

The center's store will be open and signature annual events such as the Scottsdale Arts Festival will take place at the adjacent Civic Center Mall.

Many of the upcoming season's classical music performances will be hosted at the Pinnacle Presbyterian Church in north Scottsdale, while other shows will be routed to the Orpheum and Herberger theaters in Phoenix and ASU Gammage Auditorium in Tempe until construction on the main theatre is completed in summer of 2009.

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