The Mansfield Center for the Performing Arts occupies part of the CivicCenter in downtown Great Falls: the Mansfield Theater, the Convention Center, meeting rooms, the Gibson Room and the Zellerbach Building. Owen Grubenhoff is Manager. The MansfieldCenterAdvisoryBoard advises the CityCommission and the CityManager on its operation.
Recent projects reaching the Commission include the Mansfield Theater ceiling repair, awarded to Custom Plaster LLC for $445,000 at CityCommission2025-05-06 using Montana Historic Preservation grant funding and finally paid out in October 2025, and the theatre seating project, finally paid at CityCommission2026-01-20.
In September 2025 the City retained TheatreDNA and Assembly Arts to study the City's public assembly venues and how they could be better used, made financially sustainable, and aligned with community needs. The professional services agreement, at $96,447, was approved at CityCommission2025-09-02.
The draft study was presented to the Commission at the work sessions of WorkSession2026-04-21 and WorkSession2026-05-05. The final Strategic Business Planning Study was issued May 22, 2026. The consultants were then retained again to help the City run a procurement for a venue management partner — defining operator requirements and performance goals, developing the RFP, and evaluating proposals and business terms.
Mansfield Center: https://greatfallsmt.gov/289/Mansfield-Center Board: https://greatfallsmt.gov/447/Mansfield-Center-Board