Iconic Composer John Williams Celebrated with New Performing Arts Center at Los Angeles High School

LOS ANGELES — Renowned composer John Williams, a towering figure in the world of film music, was celebrated on Wednesday with the dedication of a new performing arts center bearing his name at North Hollywood High School in Los Angeles, where he once studied.

With over 50 Academy Award nominations and five Oscar victories to his name, Williams returned to his old school to inaugurate the John Williams Performing Arts Center. During the ribbon-cutting event, he invited students to embrace and personalize the new facility.

“I’m overwhelmed and full of joy because this place, the couple of years I spent here like you are doing have been, for me, formative in my thinking, in my professional work and so on,” Williams expressed. “This is a great, magical place.”

The celebration featured performances by North Hollywood High’s marching band, which entertained the crowd with music from “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” alongside the school’s symphony orchestra, which captivated attendees with pieces from “Star Wars.” Williams watched with admiration as the students brought his legendary compositions to life.

This addition to the school is part of a substantial $320 million modernization initiative at North Hollywood High School.

School and district leaders said the project blends historic architecture with modern design to better serve students.

“All of these other buildings, some have been modernized and some have been redone,” said Suzanne Luke. “It’s old meets new in a fresh, positive way.”

“This is a space that’s flexible enough that it can meet the needs of creativity that we haven’t even thought of yet,” said Andres Chait, the acting superintendent of LAUSD.

Jerry Yang added that the campus upgrades expand opportunities well beyond the arts.

“There are so many new facilities that students can use and really, at its core, what it’s doing is it’s providing students with more opportunities to learn, explore and grow as people on this campus,” he said.

Williams, whose work includes unforgettable scores for “Jurassic Park,” “Close Encounters of the Third Kind,” “Star Wars” and “Jaws,” once walked the same halls as the students now performing in his honor.

Student Souchel Camacho said seeing Williams on campus was inspiring.

“I think being able to see someone who has such an impact on the arts, I think that’s so special,” she said. “And it will definitely be a good chance for students to see themselves within him and know and understand that they have that power to be who they want to be.”

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