The BCA began operation in 1970 when the Boston Redevelopment Authority, in an effort to revitalize the South End area, designated one city block for the development of a new arts center.
The Cyclorama, a large rotunda, was built in 1884 by Charles Amos Cummings and Willard T. Sears to house the Battle of Gettysburg, a panoramic painting by the French artist Paul Philippoteaux.
Cloyd, the founder and eventual first president of the BCA, realized the need for affordable space for artists to work during a visit to the Atlanta Arts Center.
In 2004, the BCA entered into a partnership with the Huntington Theatre Company, building the Stanford Calderwood Pavilion, the first new theater venue built in Boston in over 75 years.
[1] In early October 2019, the organization’s board of directors announced that CEO Gregory Ruffer resigned following allegations of inappropriate conduct while he worked as a professor at College of Central Florida during the 2009-2010 academic year.