Every season, the curtain rises at Wharton Center for Performing Arts to bring art and culture to the mid-Michigan Community. Here, the lights of Broadway shine bright as beloved stories and lilting music are woven together, bringing the audience to their feet with thunderous applause. You can hear the music long after the performance is complete, as the showtunes are hummed by young and old, their eyes bright with imagination.
This magical Broadway experience happens because of the many Spartans who support Wharton Center, but there is one Spartan in particular who helps guarantee musical theatre takes center stage year after year.
Bonnie Knutson, a respected professor in MSU’s School of Hospitality Business, has been a longtime supporter of the arts at MSU. For this outstanding support and advocacy for touring Broadway productions in the community, Bonnie has been named a recipient of the Broadway League’s distinguished 2025 Star of Touring Broadway Award.
Her passion for art began with her own foray onto the stage in a high school production of Brigadoon. As fate would have it, her co-star in that production was her future husband, and they would spend a lifetime passing along their love for musical theatre to their whole family.
Together, they committed financial support to Wharton Center, invested in Broadway’s future by their longtime annual support, contributed a lead gift to Wharton Center’s 2008 facility campaign and established the Robert and Bonnie Knutson Endowment for Musical Theatre in 2013.
For over 35 years, Bonnie has been a devoted advocate, volunteer leader and philanthropist for the betterment of MSU's cultural landscape. She has also provided invaluable leadership on the Wharton Center Advisory Council. As a result of her dedication, the presence of Broadway has grown in Mid-Michigan, and now, everyone in the community has a chance to watch stories dance across the stage and be inspired by the arts.
"Knutson is more than a supporter; she’s part of the heartbeat of Wharton Center," says Executive Director Eric Olmscheid. "Her passion, leadership and generosity have helped to shape the Center's identity and continue to guide its future.
Bonnie continues to demonstrate the uncommon will of Spartans with this award. Established in 1992, the Broadway League’s Star of Touring Broadway Award celebrates the behind-the-scenes champions of the arts — board members, donors, government officials and volunteers — whose efforts ensure the success and growth of Broadway across the country. Bonnie exemplifies that mission through her deep and lasting impact on the Spartan community.
“Whether through her philanthropy, her service, or simply her belief in the power of the arts to bring people together, Bonnie is a constant force for good,” says Olmscheid. “She’s a true asset to Wharton Center and an extraordinary example of what it means to be a Star of Touring Broadway."
LEARN MORE about support for the Wharton Center for Performing Arts by contacting Director of Development Kristen Calabrese at kristen.calabrese@whartoncenter.com or by calling (517) 884-3140.