In the old W.R.  Davies Center, the Cabin served as a concert venue and a meeting place for students.

With the construction of the new W.R. Davies Center came a new Cabin, and there are some notable differences between them.

The new Cabin features fireplaces, a balcony with extra seating and a full coffee shop inside. Unlike its predecessor, the new Cabin does not have a permanent stage, but rather a portable one.

Jason Anderson, Event Production Coordinator for University Centers, said the decision to have a portable stage came from looking at what would provide more for students.

“This one’s obviously far more technologically advanced … But there’s sort of a give and take,” Anderson said. “You can’t have a fireplace and a fixed stage.”

Anderson said having a portable stage will allow the space to be used for more than just performances.

“There was definitely more of a priority placed on the fireplace and what that provides to students on a complete day-round basis,” Anderson said. “As opposed to a fixed stage for performers that really only services our needs at the end of the week,” he said.

Lauren Bryant, Co-Chair of the Cabin Committee, said the portable stage makes sense to her.

“With the new student center, each room is supposed to be able to vary and change a lot, so you can add whatever you want or take out whatever you want, like with the new ballrooms,” she said. “I think it fit the mold of the new Davies Center that way.”
The building was moved further east in order to preserve the site of the original Council Oak Tree, an important symbol of the university.  As a result, the Cabin needed to be moved around and was made smaller.

Anderson said that over time, the size of the venue and the stage could force Cabin programming to change to fit the venue.

“I feel like the space itself is a magnificent space,” Anderson said.

Bryant said she and the committee aren’t currently concerned about the size or stage.

“It should still work really well for the bands that we bring here and for all of our other events,” she said. “We’re able to just pull (the stage) out, set it up and we’re good to go.”

Crisbel Jimenez, a freshman international business major at Eau Claire, enjoys going to the Cabin.

“It’s a really cool place to sit down and relax a while,” she said. “It’s calm and I like it.”

Jimenez attended the Davies Housewarming Party on Sept. 1, where Granite Rose took the portable Cabin stage for the first time.

She said they put on a good show, but the Cabin was packed.

“It seems too small for a concert,” she said. “If there had been a few more people, they wouldn’t have fit.”

Bryant said the committee had to take band size into consideration just as much with the old Cabin as they do with the new one.

One of the more notable improvements to the Cabin, Bryant said, is the addition of a coffee shop.

“It’ll be nice having it in here,” she said. “I think it’ll keep more people inside during shows. And some people also like to be able to talk during shows, so I think the balcony will be great for that.”