Something extraordinary is unfolding on Prescott’s thriving arts scene. The Cosmos Theatre is an exciting new performance space and a blank canvas for the entire community.
Fueled by passion, grit, and deep faith in the power of live storytelling, the team behind Cosmos is building a place where artists take risks, audiences lean in, and a bare room can become a universe of human connection.
Blank slate, big vision
More than a poetic name, “Cosmos Theatre” is a mission statement, too. Drawing inspiration from the vastness of the universe and the fractal intricacy of a single flower, the theatre embodies the idea that every performance is both intimate and expansive. The minimalist design of the space allows for maximum flexibility, enabling artists to transform it in myriad ways. This adaptability fosters a unique connection between performers and audiences, where the boundaries between stage and seating blur, and every show becomes a shared journey.
“A black-box theater is a blank slate,” says Hannah Palazzi. “It can be as small or as massive in scale as you want. It’s a cosmos: empty space where a big bang can happen. Anything can come out of that."
At its core the Cosmos exists to champion fresh, original and interdisciplinary works. It seeks to offer a haven for creators who dare to blend dance, film, theatre and more into groundbreaking performances. By welcoming underrepresented voices and unexpected formats, Cosmos ensures that the arts remain a dynamic and inclusive reflection of our community.
“We want to be really welcoming,” says board member Michaela Carter, including “groups of people who haven’t always been invited into the theatre conversation."
Whether it’s a colorful retelling of Shakespeare in thrust format or a musical danced with piano casters spinning across the floor, Cosmos is making space for bold expression.
“We have so many artists in Prescott who don’t necessarily play only in theatre,” Hannah says. “They play in all these other art forms, but they haven’t always been welcomed into theatre. We think there’s a demand for those artists to find a way to get their art to the community.”
Theatre as service
For the women leading Cosmos, theatre is as much a calling as it is craft. In an age when attention is splintered and screen-based entertainment is frequently optimized for disinterest, Cosmos offers something radical: presence. The shows staged here are not “second-screen” works designed to be consumed while scrolling. They are immediate, immersive and deeply human.
“This type of theatre is different,” Hannah says. “You can see somebody giggle in the corner and make eye contact with them. Suddenly that moment becomes more impactful than anything you’ve watched on TV this week.”
This is theatre not as escape, but as transformation, and at its best, transformation is a kind of service, to the soul, to the community, to the imagination. “Theatre has the capacity to help people discover who they are,” adds Delisa Myles. “To question their reality. It’s spiritual work, healing work."
But dreams, especially important ones, don’t run on magic alone. Behind the curtain, the artists who guide Cosmos — Myles, Carter, and Palazzi — spend their hours wrestling with spreadsheets, contracts and schedules.
“All three of us are doing this because of our love for the creative side of this business,” Hannah says, “and we’ve put a lot of blood, sweat and tears into learning how to run this place as a business." The Cosmos board is taking up the business of art so that the artists of Prescott, and the audiences who love them, can be immersed in its beauty.
A campus for the arts
The Cosmos is positioned to be more than a venue. Side-by-side with partners including the Hazeltine Theatre next door and tenants like the Prescott Conservatory of Performing Arts, it may well become the steady, beating heart of a growing arts campus. From the open courtyard to the gallery walls, every corner of the space pulses with opportunity.
A cosmos, after all, is made of more than stars. It’s made of gravity and motion, of bodies in relationship to one another, of unseen forces holding it all together. It’s a space with the fundamental motivation to expand, include and surround — a place for us all.
Fueling the vision
Along with direct donation, one of the simplest, most tangible ways to support Cosmos is to rent it. The theatre offers flexible, well-equipped options, including large meeting rooms, classrooms, a gallery, and a full theatre with lighting and sound capabilities.
For more, email info@cosmostheatrearts.org.
Coming to the Cosmos this season
July: Mean Girls Jr.
— A Prescott Conservatory youth production of the Broadway hit
October: Original work
— A hybrid dance-theatre piece by Delisa Myles
November: Eurydice
— Sarah Ruhl’s imaginative retelling of the myth of Orpheus
