By: Fern Sidman
New York Governor Kathy Hochul on Wednesday joined Lincoln Center leadership in New York City to announce that the $550 million renovation of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts’ new David Geffen Hall will be completed in October 2022, two years ahead of schedule. The hall is being reimagined from the inside out with expanded access to public space for the community, supported by a $6.5 million grant from Empire State Development. The project will transform the storied concert hall and home of the renowned New York Philharmonic into a world-class venue and destination that will further support New York City’s post-pandemic economic recovery.
The AP reported that the rebuilt hall will have a capacity of under 2,200, down from 2,738, with the rows in the orchestra cut from 43 to 33, and the stage moved forward 25 feet, allowing seven rows of wraparound seating behind the orchestra. About two-thirds of the third tier will be eliminated.
The Philharmonic said it had raised the final $50 million for the project since April 2021.
The orchestra is largely splitting this season between Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall, a 1,086-seat venue more typically used for chamber concerts and recitals, and Jazz at Lincoln Center’s 1,233-seat Rose Theater, located at Columbus Circle, less than half a mile from Geffen Hall, as was reported by the AP.
The New York Times reported that, “the coronavirus pushed the Philharmonic and the center to think more urgently about attracting new audiences, a challenge that orchestras have been grappling with for decades. The hall will include a variety of spaces meant to draw people in. In the lobby, there will be a 50-foot digital screen broadcasting concerts live. A new studio facing Broadway, with floor-to-ceiling windows, will offer passers-by a glimpse of performances, rehearsals and other events.”
Having just arrived at Lincoln Center from an interfaith prayer service, Governor Hochul said that she listened to remarks by the Ambassador to the United Nations and the Consul General. She told the assemblage that “so many people came together in support to show solidarity with freedom-loving people all over this world and how under assault they are and they need New York State behind them.”
She added that, “I spoke to the Ambassador to Poland this morning and told him that we want to welcome the refugees with open arms, beginning as soon as possible. There are plenty of places and people just waiting for the opportunity to show real New York love to these people who’ve been under siege. So we hope that happens real soon.”
Concerning the new David Geffen Hall, Governor Hochul said, “This extraordinary accomplishment came two years early because of the visionaries who oversee the Philharmonic and the Lincoln Center.”
She extended her thanks to NYC Mayor Eric Adams for his “incredible enthusiastic embrace of his role, and the fact that he’s out there celebrating the arts and culture and entertainment.”
She also thanked former Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, current Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine, Hope Knight from Empire State Development, Mara Manus, Executive Director of the Council on the Arts, Peter May the co-chair of the Philharmonic, Henry Timms, President and CEO of the Lincoln Center, and Deborah Borda, President and CEO of the Philharmonic.
Governor Hochul noted that Deborah Borda was the first woman to head the Philharmonic.
In an interview with the New York Times, Ms. Borda said: “It’s not just a simple renovation where we repainted the walls and put down new carpet and chairs. The whole space is transformed. It’s an entirely new hall and an entirely new feeling.”
She added that, “We’re opening ourselves up to New York so it doesn’t feel like a fortress. It feels welcoming, inviting and vibrant.”
The governor also thanked Lincoln Center and the New York Philharmonic for its efforts during the pandemic as all scheduled performances were cancelled for 18 months. She said: “You literally opened up, not the doors, but the land to concerts outside, 10 venues, and invited people from underserved communities, young people, who’d never been exposed to the arts like this.”
I believe that you used this opportunity as a catalyst to trigger a passion and love for music and arts and culture in a way that no other institution could have envisioned. So to all of you who did this during the pandemic, I want to thank you for allowing people to still celebrate the best part of life, even while we are dealing with that incredible healthcare crisis.”
Governor Hochul added that, “this new David Geffen Hall, the ingenious behind it, breaking down barriers, bringing people closer to the performers. I believe that the one major takeaway from this pandemic is that people miss that very human connection. That isolation, that sense of being alone, it was paralyzing for so many people and this venue is going to be so open and welcoming and bring people close together in countless ways.”
The New York Times reported that the renovation of the hall — which opened in 1962 as Philharmonic Hall and was called Avery Fisher Hall starting in 1976 — has been in the works for decades, repeatedly stalled by management woes and concerns about losing subscribers if the orchestra was exiled from its home for a prolonged period.
A $100 million gift from the entertainment mogul David Geffen revived the project in 2015. Since then, the orchestra and center have raised an additional $450 million, though other naming gifts have not yet been announced, according to the Times report.
The Times also reported that the “hall’s notoriously congested lobbies and other public spaces have been reimagined by Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects, which in 2019 joined a team that already included Diamond Schmitt Architects, which is working on the auditorium’s interior; Akustiks, an acoustical design firm; and Fisher Dachs Associates, a theater design firm.”
The lobby has nearly doubled in size and will include a lounge, a bar and a restaurant.
The project’s leaders said the renovation has provided substantial benefits to the city’s economy, which has lagged behind the rest of the United States in its recovery. More than 6,000 jobs have been created, according to the Philharmonic and Lincoln Center; many have gone to businesses run by women or members of racial or ethnic minorities, as was reported by the Times.
Governor Hochul added: “What you’re seeing right out this window is the future of New York. We’re going to continue to build, continue to create a legacy that people in the future will talk about for generations to come.
So I’m proud of the role that the state played in helping with the completion of a $550 million project. I thank all the benefactors and the patrons of this project. That is why this city is so great, we benefit from your incredible generosity. We don’t take it for granted. We’re happy you’re New Yorkers, and I want to thank everyone involved in this incredible announcement here today.”
Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine said: “I was thrilled to be part of this event with leaders from across the city and state. It’s hard to find anything good to come out of these horrible pandemic years but the fact that this magnificent project is being completed so far ahead of schedule is wonderful news. This world class concert hall will be a magnet for visitors from around the world and will offer an incredible musical experience for New Yorkers as well.”
