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New York City Center

New York City Center (previously known as the Mecca Temple, City Center of Music and Drama, and the New York City Center 55th Street Theater[2]) is a performing arts center at 131 West 55th Street between Sixth and Seventh Avenues in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Developed by the Shriners between 1922 and 1924 as a Masonic house of worship, it has operated as a performing arts complex owned by the government of New York City. City Center is a performing home for several major dance companies as well as the Manhattan Theatre Club (MTC), and it hosts the Encores! musical theater series and the Fall for Dance Festival annually.

New York City Center
New York City Center in 2010
Address131 W. 55th St.
New York, New York
United States
OwnerCity of New York
OperatorCity Center 55th Street Theater Foundation
TypePerforming arts center
Off-Broadway (MTC)
CapacityMain stage: 2,257
Stage I: 299
Stage II: 150
Construction
Opened1924 (building)
1984 (Stages I & II)
Years active1943–present
ArchitectHarry P. Knowles and Clinton & Russell
Website
www.nycitycenter.org
Mecca Temple
Coordinates40°45′50″N 73°58′46″W / 40.76389°N 73.97944°W / 40.76389; -73.97944
Arealess than one acre
Architectural styleMoorish
NRHP reference No.84002788[1]
NYCL No.1234
Significant dates
Added to NRHPSeptember 7, 1984
Designated NYCLApril 12, 1983

The facility was designed by Harry P. Knowles and Clinton and Russell in the Moorish Revival style and is divided into two parts. The southern section houses a main auditorium, with 2,257 seats across three levels; this auditorium could originally fit over four thousand people, but it has been downsized over the years. Immediately beneath the main auditorium are two smaller theaters, one of which is used by MTC; these occupy what was originally a banquet hall. This section contains an ornate sandstone facade with an alfiz–like entryway made of terracotta, as well as a dome measuring about 104 feet (32 m) across. The northern section is much simpler in design, with a largely windowless brick facade, and contains four rehearsal studios and a 12-story office tower.

The Shriners decided in 1921 to construct the 55th Street building after having outgrown their previous headquarters, and the new building was dedicated on December 29, 1924. The Great Depression prompted the Shriners to downsize their activities in the 1930s and relocate out of the building entirely by 1940. New York City mayor Fiorello La Guardia and New York City Council president Newbold Morris established the City Center of Music and Drama Inc. (CCMD) to operate the building as a municipal performing-arts venue, which reopened on December 11, 1943. In its early years, City Center housed the City Opera and City Ballet, as well as symphony, dance theater, drama, and art companies. After the City Opera and Ballet relocated to Lincoln Center in the 1960s, the CCMD continued to operate the building until 1976, when the City Center 55th Street Theater Foundation took over operation. City Center largely hosted dance performances during the late 20th century, although it also began hosting off-Broadway shows when the MTC moved to City Center in 1984. The venue was renovated in the 1980s and again in the 2010s.

Site Edit

New York City Center, originally the Mecca Temple, is at 131 West 55th Street, between Sixth Avenue and Seventh Avenue, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City.[3] The building's "L"-shaped land lot covers 25,153 square feet (2,336.8 m2), extending 200 feet (61 m) northward to 56th Street,[4] with frontage of 150 feet (46 m) along 55th Street and 100 feet (30 m) on 56th Street.[5][6] City Center abuts the CitySpire office building to the west and 125 West 55th Street to the east.[4][3] Immediately to the north are Carnegie Hall, Carnegie Hall Tower, Russian Tea Room, and Metropolitan Tower from west to east. Other nearby buildings include 140 West 57th Street, 130 West 57th Street, and the Parker New York hotel to the northeast, as well as the 55th Street Playhouse to the southwest and 1345 Avenue of the Americas to the southeast.[4][3]

The neighborhood was historically part of an artistic hub that developed around the two blocks of West 57th Street from Sixth Avenue west to Broadway during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, following the opening of Carnegie Hall.[7][8][9] Several buildings in the area were constructed as residences for artists and musicians, such as 130 and 140 West 57th Street, the Rodin Studios, and the Osborne Apartments, as well as the demolished Sherwood Studios and Rembrandt. In addition, the area contained the headquarters of organizations such as the American Fine Arts Society, the Lotos Club, and the American Society of Civil Engineers.[10]

When the Mecca Temple was constructed in 1923, the city block had contained garages, stables, and a school.[11][12] The lots on the southern part of the building's site, at 131–133 West 55th Street, had been used by Famous Players–Lasky Corporation as a movie studio.[13][14] The two lots on the northern part of the site, at 132 and 134 West 56th Street, contained horse stables.[15][16]

Architecture Edit

New York City Center was built by the Shriners between 1922 and 1924 as the Mecca Temple, a Masonic house of worship.[2][17] The building was designed by architects Harry P. Knowles (a Master Mason), who died before its completion, in conjunction with the firm of Clinton and Russell.[2][17] The building's design is Neo-Moorish, although sources have described the 55th Street wing as "Moresco-Baroque" and "delightfully absurd".[18] An article for the Architectural Forum characterized the Shriners' clubhouses in general as "Saracenic".[19]

The building contains a steel superstructure.[20][21][22] The roof is carried by a large 65-short-ton (58-long-ton; 59 t) girder measuring 92.5 feet (28.2 m) long and 13 feet (4.0 m) wide. The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) wrote that, at the time, it was the largest piece of steel ever installed in a New York City building.[20]

Form and facade Edit

In keeping with the Shriners' heritage, the City Center building's facade incorporates several motifs inspired by Islamic architecture.[23] Knowles had to work around the irregularly shaped site, and he needed to accommodate meeting rooms, an auditorium, and a banquet hall. As such, he placed the clubrooms and lodge rooms on the northern half of the site, which was narrower and faced 56th Street.[20][21] The northern portion of the building, at 12 stories high, is also taller than the rest of the building.[24][25] The auditorium and banquet hall were placed on the wider southern half, facing 55th Street, since these spaces were to be used much more frequently.[20][21] The southern part of the building has a terracotta-tiled rooftop dome.[26]

55th Street facade Edit

 
Main entrance on 55th Street

The southern part of the building, which contains the theater, is largely clad with ashlar sandstone and contains a large pointed arch spanning nearly the entirety of the facade.[20][25] Early plans called for the facade to be laid in contrasting shades of sandstone; ultimately, the building was clad with golden Ohio sandstone. The word "Mecca" was originally inscribed at the top of the large arch.[17] The 55th Street elevation also contains multicolored glazed terracotta tiles manufactured by New York Architectural Terra Cotta.[23] In the early 2010s, a glass-and-steel marquee was installed above the entrance.[27]

The entrance consists of an alfiz with an arcade of nine horseshoe arches.[20][25] The arches are surrounded by a terracotta frieze with ochre, green, and blue foliate motifs. Each of the horseshoe arches in the arcade is supported by pink-veined and gray-veined granite columns and contain voussoirs made of glazed ochre tiles. The tympanum of each arch has multicolored tiles, some of which depict a scimitar and a crescent.[25][28] There are also metal lamps within the arches.[25] The entryway's design reflects the arrangement of the staircases and lobby inside.[28] The five central arches are grouped together and lead to the theater's lobby. The two horseshoe arches on either side lead to staircases that ascend to the theater's mezzanine and first balcony. On either side of the arcade are double-height sandstone arches, which connect to staircases that lead down to the basement and up to the second balcony.[25][28]

Each of the arcade's five central doorways is topped by a pair of arched windows on the mezzanine level; these windows are separated by engaged columns and surrounded by an extension of the terracotta frieze. The five center bays are flanked by blue terracotta pilasters and topped by a muqarnas cornice above the mezzanine level.[25][28] The upper portion of the 55th Street facade is relatively plain in design, except for lancet windows on the sides.[25] The uppermost part of the facade is stepped upward at its center, following the curve of the domed roof, and is topped by a large cornice with dentils. The corners are chamfered at the top; this was intended to serve as a transition between the cube-shaped lower stories and the domed roof.[20][25]

Domed roof Edit

The theater's domed roof measures 104 ft (32 m) wide and 50 ft (15 m) tall, with 28,475 pieces of Spanish roof tile.[26] Structurally, the roof is composed of four main ribs; between these are twelve smaller ribs, which are supported at their tops by a "ring" just below the top of the dome.[29] Unlike other domes in the United States, it was designed as a true sphere.[26] The lower half of each rib is composed of two chords, while the upper half is made of I-beams measuring 15 inches (380 mm) thick. The inner chord of the dome rises 37.5 feet (11.4 m) and has a diameter of 88 feet (27 m); by contrast, the outer chord has a radius of about 54 feet (16 m).[29]

The dome's outer surface consists of a 3-inch (7.6 cm) layer of a material called "Nailcrete", which was spread across metal lath; the terracotta tiles were then attached to the Nailcrete.[29] The tiles were originally painted green and were glazed;[25] by the 1990s, the roof tiles were colored red.[17] The tiles gradually narrow near the top of the dome, which also makes City Center the only structure in the Northeastern United States with a dome of graduated clay tiles.[26] The top of the dome originally was decorated with a scimitar and a crescent.[24] The roof was renovated in the mid-2000s. The refurbished roof includes a 18-inch (3.2 mm) waterproof membrane underneath each tile; a steel frame above the membrane; and 8,000 stainless-steel anchors that connect the tiles to the steel frame.[26]

56th Street facade Edit

 
56th Street facade

The 56th Street elevation of City Center's facade was designed in a substantially different manner than that on 55th Street, as the northern part of the building was designed for a different purpose. The facade contains elements of an abstract classical style. At ground level, the facade is made of limestone and contains five arches. The outermost arches are the widest and are connected directly to stage rear, as is the center arch, which is slightly narrower. The second-outermost arches on either side are the narrowest and are flanked by lanterns on either side.[28][30]

The upper 11 stories are clad with yellow brick. The third story contains three windows, which contain sandstone moldings, balconies, and pediments.[28][30] All the decoration above the third story was made of buff-colored terracotta.[28][18] The stories above originally contained the Shriners' lodge rooms, so Knowles chose not to add windows, as was typical for office buildings of the time. Instead, on the fourth through ninth stories, the center of the facade contains six vertical piers, which are made of projecting bricks that are angled outward.[28][31] The side elevations of the northern half of the building contain even less decoration; they largely consist of brick walls with some scattered window openings.[28]

Interior Edit

Originally, the Mecca Temple included a three-level auditorium with space for 5,000 people in total.[22][32] The building also contained a banquet room in the basement, which could fit 5,000 people, and three lodge rooms on the upper stories, which could accommodate another 3,000 people.[32] By 2010, the building contained 12 stories of offices, a main auditorium with 2,753 seats, two smaller auditoriums in the basement, and four studios.[33]

The main doorways on 55th Street lead to a ticket lobby, where gold-metal doors surrounded by ceramic tiles lead to the main auditorium.[30] In 2011, the lobbies were rearranged so that audiences entered the auditorium from the sides, rather than from the rear. The modern-day lobby is divided into outer and inner sections. The outer lobby has a bar, while the inner lobby has screens for video installations, which are changed three times a year.[27]

Main auditorium Edit

The original seating capacity of the main auditorium is disputed but has been variously cited as 4,080[34] or 4,400.[32] According to the Boston Daily Globe, the main auditorium originally had a foyer with space for another 600 people, bringing the total capacity to 5,000.[32] These seats were spread across a ground-story orchestra level and two steeply raked balconies;[17] in contrast to the balconies, the orchestra was originally nearly flat.[35][36] Both balcony levels are supported by girders that are cantilevered from the rear of the auditorium.[37] The first balcony level is supported by a pair of diagonal girders on either end because of its unusual shape. The second balcony level, also known as the gallery, is cantilevered above the first balcony and the orchestra; the center of this level is supported by a truss measuring 92.5 feet (28.2 m) long.[36]

During the mid-20th century, the seating capacity was reduced to approximately 2,932.[38] During a 1982 renovation, City Center officials removed another 186 seats from the orchestra, reducing it to 2.746 seats.[39][40] The 1982 renovation also included raising the entire orchestra and raking the first ten rows.[38] The front rows of the rebuilt orchestra were raised 10 inches (250 mm), while the rear rows were raised by as much as 4 feet 6 inches (1.37 m).[35] City Center was again downsized in 2011 to approximately 2,250 seats.[27][41] This project involved removing six rows of seats, increasing the slope of the orchestra level, widening each seat by 2 inches, and reupholstering them in blue and green.[27]

The proscenium arch and the ceiling were decorated in the Islamic style, with such motifs as stalactites and honeycombs.[17] The main auditorium's interior contained Moorish motifs such as multi-pointed stars, lancet windows, and large chandeliers hanging from molded ceiling plasterwork.[30] After the city government moved into the theater in 1943, the space was repainted white because it was easier to maintain.[27] During the mid-20th century, the auditorium was decorated in red, green, blue, and gilded rococo, but it was repainted again in beige and taupe in 1982.[35] The original color scheme was restored in 2011, along with the murals on the ceiling of the mezzanine lobby.[27][41]

The auditorium's original design focused the audience's attention at the center of the stage, but this design also created difficult sightlines; one observer likened the design to "watching a television screen".[27] Variety magazine stated that the auditorium's stage could fit 100 musicians.[34] Unlike traditional theaters, the stage originally did not have any wing space for performers;[42] even after the theater was renovated in 2011, the wing space was too small to accommodate certain types of productions,[43] To accommodate the Shriners, who frequently smoked in the Mecca Temple,[18] there was an air intake on the auditorium's roof.[29][18] Fresh air traveled from the intake to a fan and heater room above the auditorium's proscenium, and air was then distributed through the floor slabs of each level.[29] A lighting booth was also installed in the auditorium in 2011.[27]

Basement Edit

The basement originally contained a banquet hall. This space did not contain columns. Instead, it was spanned by a set of deep lattice trusses, which were flanked by deep plate girders; these formed the floor of the auditorium.[22] The space between the trusses contained ducts that supplied fresh air to the auditorium and basement; a system of exhaust pipes for the basement; and other utilities.[44]

After an attempt in 1970 to convert City Center's basement into a cinematheque,[45] the basement became a 299-seat off-Broadway theater called The Space in 1981.[46] When The Space opened, it was only occasionally used by dance companies.[47] The Manhattan Theatre Club (MTC) moved to The Space in 1984[48][49] and divided the basement into two auditoriums.[50] As of 2022, MTC operates two off-Broadway spaces in the basement, known as Stage I and Stage II.[51][52] Stage I contains 299 seats, while Stage II contains 150 seats.[53] MTC also operates a coatroom, restroom, and members' lounge on the landing of the staircase between the basement and the lobby.[52]

Offices Edit

The three lodge rooms were placed in the northern wing of the building.[17] When the Mecca Temple was converted to the City Center, the lodge rooms became rehearsal studios.[17][50] During the 1950s, scripts for the television show Your Show of Shows, starring Sid Caesar, were written in one of the offices on the sixth floor.[50] The theater's modern-day rehearsal studios occupy the upper stories.[27]

History Edit

Mecca Temple Edit

The City Center building on 55th Street was constructed as the Mecca Temple, the headquarters of the Shriners. The order's previous headquarters had been located at Sixth Avenue and 23rd Street since 1875.[21][54] The order began hosting large events at Carnegie Hall in 1891, but the hall banned smoking,[54] even though many Shriners enjoyed smoking large cigars during their meetings.[55] Although the Shriners moved to the 71st Regiment Armory on Park Avenue in 1905, the armory was not well-suited for theatrical productions. The Shriners also had trouble booking a theater except during the workday.[54] By 1911, the Shriners owned a converted brownstone row house at 107 West 45th Street, and they also held large meetings in the concert hall of Madison Square Garden.[56] The row house contained a grill room on the ground floor, a lounge and committee room on the second floor, executive offices on the third floor, and an assembly room on the fourth floor.[57]

Development Edit

 
A bond issued in 1922 to raise funds for the construction of the Mecca Temple

By the early 1920s, the Shriners had outgrown their 45th Street location and wished to build a new headquarters prior to their 50th anniversary in 1922.[57] This prompted 1,500 Shriners to vote in favor of a new temple in April 1921.[54] The Shriners planned to fund the new temple by issuing bonds and by constructing an office building above the temple.[57] The order issued $1.5 million in bonds,[58] and its 11,080 members had purchased $1 million worth of bonds by the end of 1921, allowing the Shriners to build a standalone temple.[57] The rest of the bond issue was used to pay expenses, taxes, and interest on the mortgage loan.[58] Mecca Temple paid Yale University $400,000 for the lots at 131–135 West 55th Street in Midtown Manhattan in December 1921.[13][14] Yale, in turn, had acquired the site from William S. and Mary E. Mason three months beforehand.[55] The sale was finalized in January 1922; the Shriners hoped that their new temple would increase land values in the surrounding area.[12] The Shriners bought two stables at 133 and 135 West 56th Street from George C. Mason that April for $140,000.[15][16]

H. P. Knowles filed plans for a house of worship on 55th Street with the Manhattan Bureau of Buildings in August 1922. The structure was to cost $750,000 and was to contain a meeting hall in the basement; a three-level auditorium; three studios; and three stories of offices.[5][6] The auditorium was to contain 5,000 seats, which would allow it to be rented out for events such as concerts.[59] James Stewart & Co. was hired as the building's general contractor.[60] The Shriners hosted a parade on October 13, 1923, after which Arthur S. Tompkins, a New York state judge and the Grand Master of Masons in New York State, laid the building's cornerstone on 56th Street. At the time, the building was planned to cost $2.5 million.[61][62] The Mecca Temple received a $1 million mortgage loan from Manufacturers Trust in July 1924.[63][64] The building was dedicated on December 29, 1924, with the invocation offered by Episcopal bishop William T. Manning; contemporary sources characterized the building as a "mosque".[24][65]

Shriners usage Edit

The Mecca Temple's auditorium first opened to the general public in May 1925, when it hosted a fashion show.[66][67] By then, the building was complete except for interior decorations and the installation of seats on the first floor.[66] John Philip Sousa's band performed in the temple's first public concert that October,[68][69] and the New York Symphony Orchestra relocated its performances to the auditorium from the Aeolian Building on 42nd Street.[70] During the 1920s, the Mecca Temple also hosted events such as a meeting of post-office workers;[71] a memorial service for American Revolutionary War military commander Casimir Pulaski;[72] and the meetings of Congregation Rodeph Sholom.[73] Unlike other Shriners temples, which were tax-exempt, mainly philanthropic concerns, the Mecca Temple earned money from renting its auditorium out, so it was not tax-exempt.[18]

By the 1930s, the Great Depression had forced many fraternal groups, such as the Shriners, to reduce the scope of their activities.[17] The Mecca Holding Company, the Mecca Temple's original owner, transferred the building's title to a group of Shriners trustees in 1933.[18] The Fides Opera Company, led by Cesare Sodero, began performing at the Mecca Temple the same year.[74] Irving Verschleiser,[a] operator of the Central Opera House on the Upper East Side, leased the building's ballroom and kitchens in 1934, with plans to convert it into the Mecca Temple Casino.[75] Aside from opera, dance, theatrical productions, and concerts, the auditorium's events in the 1930s included a Federal Theatre Project circus,[76] a protest meeting attended by over one-fifth of the city's Armenian population.[77] and a speech by former Greek prime minister Alexandros Papanastasiou.[78] Manufacturers Trust foreclosed on the building in 1937 after the Shriners failed to make mortgage payments. Verschleiser then took over the building and began operating it through his company, Mecca Temple Casino Inc.[18][79] Verschleiser failed to make a profit on the building, and the 130 West 56th Street Corporation took over in 1939.[18]

The Shriners had stopped using the building completely by 1940.[80] A writer for The New York Times reported that the auditorium had been relegated to "political oratory, all sorts of organizational harangues and resolutions, [and] second-rate prize fights".[80] Opera and ballet impresario Max Rabinoff announced in August 1941 that he would convert the auditorium into the Cosmopolitan Opera House and that he would convert the office section into the People's Art Center.[81][82] Rabinoff planned to leave the exterior intact while remodeling the interior for ballet, opera, and concerts.[82] The theater had reopened by November 1941.[83] It hosted shows such as a series of four programs by the NBC Symphony Orchestra;[83] the operettas The Gypsy Baron[84] and Beggar Student;[85] and a set of concerts to raise money for "war stamps" issued during World War II.[86]

City Center of Music and Drama operation Edit

By 1942, the 130 West 56th Street Corporation had not paid taxes for several months, and the New York City Treasurer's office was acting as the receiver for the theater and office building.[87] That September, the New York City government bought the building for $100,000 at a foreclosure auction.[87][88] The city was offering the Mecca Temple for rent the next month.[89] Mayor Fiorello La Guardia and New York City Council president Newbold Morris began planning to convert the Mecca Temple into a theater. In March 1943, La Guardia named a committee to study these plans.[90][91] La Guardia and Morris cofounded the City Center of Music and Drama (CCMD) with tax lawyer Morton Baum, who was described as "the financial, production, and political brain that held it together".[92] The CCMD was to present opera, concerts, dance, ballet, and theatrical productions at the Mecca Temple.[93] The men wished to provide "cultural entertainment at popular prices", with tickets costing as little as $1.[94] To attract working-class audiences, La Guardia proposed that shows start at 5:30 p.m., after the end of the workday.[95]

The New York Supreme Court approved the articles of incorporation for the City Center of Music and Drama Inc. in July 1943.[95] La Guardia and Morris appointed a board of 24 people to operate the CCMD.[96] The city government hired Aymar Embury II the same month to renovate the Mecca Temple's auditorium.[97][98] City officials filed plans for the renovation with the city's Department of Buildings that August,[99] and the Board of Estimate voted to provide $65,000 for the building's renovation.[100][101] The next month, the Board of Estimate gave the CCMD a permit to stage live shows within the Mecca Temple.[102][103] Due to material shortages during World War II, the city government postponed the renovation of the theater's interior.[104] Harry Friedgut was appointed as City Center's first managing director in September 1943,[105][106] while Morris served as chairman of the CCMD.[107] The Mecca Temple was officially renamed City Center shortly afterward.[108][109] The CCMD began paying $2,000 a month in rent that October, before the theater had formally opened.[110]

Opening and early years Edit

 
Interior view

City Center opened on December 11, 1943, with a concert by the New York Philharmonic and a birthday party for La Guardia.[111][112] The publicist Jean Dalrymple was appointed as volunteer director of public relations.[113][114] The first theatrical show was a revival of Rachel Crothers's play Susan and God, on December 13, 1943.[113][115] Initially, City Center presented revivals of successful Broadway shows to attract as many visitors as possible.[96] Performers who appeared at City Center between the 1940s and 1960s included Helen Hayes, Montgomery Clift, Orson Welles, Gwen Verdon, Charlton Heston, Marcel Marceau, Bob Fosse, Nicholas Magallanes, Francisco Moncion, Tallulah Bankhead, Vincent Price, Jessica Tandy, Hume Cronyn, Uta Hagen, and Christopher Walken.[116]

The newly-established New York City Opera started performing at City Center in February 1944 under director Laszlo Halasz;[117] the New York City Symphony Orchestra, led by Leopold Stokowski, debuted at City Center the next month.[118] NBC initially sponsored all of City Center's concerts and music performances.[119] The theater's first several shows were profitable, even though ticket prices were capped at $1.65.[120] By the end of the first operating season in May 1944, the theater had grossed over $414,000 from 171 performances, which had attracted 346,000 guests. City Center recorded a net profit of $844.[110][121] This prompted City Center officials to make plans for their own ballet company and repertory theatre company.[122]

Friedgut resigned as managing director in July 1944, citing disputes with Morris.[107] Although attendance at City Center doubled to 750,000 during the 1944–1945 season, the center recorded a net loss of $36,000, in part because of the orchestra company's large expenses.[123][124] The Ballet Russe de Monte-Carlo began performing at City Center in late 1944[125] and remained there for five years.[126][127] To prevent a future mayoral administration from shuttering City Center,[128][129] the CCMD renewed its lease of the building in July 1945 for five years, paying at least $10,000 a year.[130][131] City Center planned to establish a theatrical company for the 1945–1946 season, which would present revivals of plays;[132] during that season, the center hosted 614,000 guests.[133] Officials installed an air-conditioning system in the auditorium in mid-1946.[134]

City Center remained popular in the late 1940s, with over 750,000 guests during the 1946–1947 season.[133][135] Although the city government no longer financially supported the center, City Center sold over $1 million worth of tickets per year.[133] City Center accommodated about 578,000 guests during the 1947–1948 season[136] and around 576,000 guests the following season.[137] The New York City Symphony stopped performing at City Center after that season,[138] mainly due to the theater's poor acoustics.[139] George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein's Ballet Society became a resident organization of the CCMD in 1948 and was accordingly renamed the New York City Ballet Company.[140] The CCMD established the New York City Theater Company the same season.[96] The New York City Dance Theater performed at City Center during the 1949–1950 season,[141][142] although it did not schedule any performances afterward.[143] Despite grossing over $1.2 million from opera, ballet, theatre, and dance performances during the 1949–1950 season, the CCMD recorded a net operating loss of $3,517 during that season.[144]

Lease renewals and financial issues Edit

Several months before City Center's lease expired in 1950, musicians' labor union Local 802 had proposed buying the building for $850,000.[145] Theatrical critic Brooks Atkinson wrote that "all of the City Center's programs lose money. But the losses are not calamitous" because of the theater's relatively cheap tickets and because of various large donations.[146] Uncertainty over City Center's lease caused the 1950–1951 season to be delayed, as the CCMD could not book shows until its lease had been renewed.[147][148] After mayor William O'Dwyer pledged his support of City Center, the Board of Estimate renewed the CCMD's lease in February 1950. The CCMD agreed to cap ticket prices at $2.50, and its rent was set at 1.5 percent of its annual gross receipts.[149][150] City Center's deficit grew to over $72,000 during the 1950–1951 season.[151] By mid-1951, Baum considered hosting dramas only during the winter, as attendance was generally lower during the spring. Low patronage during the summer had already prompted him to stop staging musicals in July and August.[152]

The CCMD announced plans in March 1952 to convert one of the center's emergency-exit hallways into a visual art gallery;[153] the space would exhibit contemporary sculptures and visual art.[154] Kirstein was appointed as City Center's managing director later that year.[155] CCMD officials, citing increasing production costs asked the New York State Legislature in early 1953 to pass a law allowing the organization to lease the building for $1 annually.[156][157] The law was enacted later the same year.[158] The CCMD began raising $200,000 in April 1953 as part of its first-ever fundraiser,[159] and the Rockefeller Foundation also donated $200,000 to fund the ballet and opera companies for three years.[160][161] The 75 by 15 ft (22.9 by 4.6 m) visual-art gallery opened in September 1953;[162][163] it hosted ten exhibitions of 50 canvases per year.[164] The building needed repairs by the mid-1950s, and the city government did not always fix these issues promptly. To convince the city government to fix the leaking roof, Morris invited mayor Vincent R. Impellitteri to the City Center on a rainy night; the mayor's program soon became soaked, and the roof was fixed shortly afterward.[165][166]

The CCMD continued to lose money, recording a deficit of $225,000 for the 1953–1954 season, even as annual attendance had reached 962,000.[167] An organization called the Friends of City Center was created in January 1954, selling annual memberships to raise money.[168] The Friends sold 3,000 memberships, mostly to small-dollar donors; it was reorganized after losing $25,000.[169] The City Center Light Opera Company hosted its first performances in May 1954.[170] Kirstein resigned as City Center's managing director in January 1955 because he and the board of directors could not agree on basic policy. Whereas Kirstein wanted to spend more money to stage experimental shows, the board wished to stage more established shows and reduce its expenses.[171] The Board of Estimate voted that February to lease the building to the CCMD for $1 per year.[158] The CCMD saw an $220,000 operating loss during the 1955–1956 season, although grants and donations covered much of this cost.[172]

After the City Opera suspended the beginning of its 1957 season due to financial deficits,[173] Kirstein unsuccessfully proposed reorganizing City Center and establishing a new opera company.[174] The CCMD had received $281,000 in gifts by the end of the 1956–1957 season, saving it from insolvency, although it still operated at a net loss.[175][176] After the 1956–1957 season, City Center's drama company stopped performing for several seasons.[164] The following season, the CCMD recorded an operating deficit of over $550,000, although donations covered almost all of this deficit.[177] The Friends of City Center had 2,670 members, who paid between $10 and $1,000 per year.[169] Further losses during the 1959–1960 season prompted officials to increase the center's maximum ticket prices by mid-1960.[178]

Relocation of the ballet and opera Edit

 
Entrance to City Center at night

As early as 1959, the CCMD was negotiating to move all of its shows from the former Mecca Temple to the newly-developed Lincoln Center on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.[179][180] The CCMD closed City Center's art gallery in May 1961, as the gallery had been unprofitable and had not attracted sponsorships. At the time, the gallery attracted 2,500 monthly visitors, and it had displayed 3,600 artworks, one-eighth of which had been sold.[181] Donors reduced the organization's operating deficit to $12,000 for the 1961–1962 season,[182] and the CCMD had a $37,500 surplus the next season, although the City Opera's losses soon eliminated this surplus.[183] In advance of the 1964 New York World's Fair, the City Ballet announced that it would move to the New York State Theater at Lincoln Center after the 1963–1964 season.[184][185] By the CCMD's 20th anniversary in December 1943, the theater had received 16 million total guests over twenty 40-week seasons.[127] During the 1963–1964 season, the CCMD recorded a net profit for the first time in 18 years, after donors covered that season's operating deficits.[186]

Meanwhile, the CCMD was still contemplating relocating its opera, light opera, and drama companies to the New York State Theater,[187] although Lincoln Center and CCMD officials could not agree on who would control that theater.[188][189] By then, Variety magazine described the original City Center on 55th Street as having "many faulty seat locations" and a shallow stage.[189] The organization ultimately agreed in January 1965 to permanently relocate its ballet and opera companies to the New York State Theater. The CCMD would relaunch its drama company and would continue to host light opera and drama at the 55th Street theater.[138][190] The CCMD became a member company of Lincoln Center in 1965[191] and signed a sublease for the New York State Theater in January 1966.[192] Although the organization recorded a $1.7 million operating deficit during the 1965–1966 season due to the costs of the second theater, this was offset by nearly $2 million in donations.[193]

Plans for 55th Street theater Edit

The CCMD continued to subsidize the 55th Street theater after relocating its ballet and opera companies.[194] After Newbold Morris retired in 1966, Baum was appointed as the chairman of City Center's board of directors.[195] The same year, the Robert Joffrey Ballet became a resident dance company and was renamed the City Center Joffrey Ballet,[196] relocating to 55th Street that September.[197] The CCMD's drama company also resumed performances at the 55th Street theater during the 1966–1967 season, having been inactive for nine years.[198] The city government donated $500,000 for a renovation of the 55th Street building in 1967.[199] This money was used to overhaul the air-conditioning system, repaint the interior, and replace wiring.[165][199] After Baum died in early 1968, the CCMD's board appointed an executive committee to temporarily take over the organization's operations.[200] Later the same year, the CCMD appointed Norman Singer as the organization's general administrator[201] and Richard Clurman as the chairman of its board.[202][203]

Under Clurman's leadership, the CCMD proposed relocating from its 55th Street theater, which officials felt was obsolete. As part of the proposed City Center Plaza, the CCMD wished to build four theaters, each with 400 to 800 seats, on the site of the third Madison Square Garden (MSG) on Eighth Avenue.[204] While negotiations for the MSG site were ongoing, CCMD officials announced in early 1970 that they would convert the 55th Street theater's basement into the City Center Cinematheque, with one or more movie theaters and a film museum.[45] In January 1971. the CCMD proposed taking over Lincoln Center's Vivian Beaumont Theater and renovating it.[205] To fund the $5.2 million cost of renovating the Beaumont, the CCMD planned to demolish the 55th Street theater and replace it with an office skyscraper containing a 3,000-seat theater.[206][207] The CCMD withdrew its plan for the Beaumont that December,[208] but it continued to contemplate the demolition of the 55th Street theater.[209][210]

City Center stopped producing drama altogether in 1969,[211][212] although Singer proposed creating a drama company in early 1972.[210] Before the 1972–1973 season began, two companies joined the CCMD: the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, which became the Alvin Ailey City Center Dance Theater,[213] and the Acting Company, which became the City Center Acting Company.[214] By October 1972, the CCMD had recorded a total deficit of $1.3 million.[215] The organization had recorded a net operating loss of $3.7 million for the 1971–1972 season, but it had not received enough grants and donations to offset these losses,[215] which grew during the next year.[216] Although the Ford Foundation gave $500,000 each to the CCMD's ballet and opera companies in early 1973, the CCMD had to drastically reduce funding for the Joffrey Ballet and for the proposed Cinematheque.[217] Later that year, the Board of Estimate extended the theater's lease for another 52 years.[218]

By the 1970s, the CCMD was subsidizing the ballet and opera at Lincoln Center, as well as the Joffrey Ballet, the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater, the Acting Company, and the Young People's Theater at 55th Street.[219][220] The CCMD also subsidized the Cinematheque, which had leased space under the Queensboro Bridge in 1973;[221][222] the Cinematheque never opened due to a lack of money.[223][224] In addition, the CCMD co-produced the American Ballet Theatre (ABT).[220] CCMD officials considered selling the 55th Street theater in 1974 to a developer who planned to erect a residential and commercial skyscraper on much of the block.[225] The 55th Street theater had hosted dance performances nearly exclusively for several years, so the CCMD planned to construct a dance theater in the proposed skyscraper.[226] Singer resigned as the organization's director that July.[220][227] By then, the center's net deficit had grown to $4 million.[220] The CCMD ultimately decided to retain the existing building in early 1975.[228]

55th Street Theater Foundation takeover Edit

 
Detail of the ceiling with one of the lights and arabesque motifs

Reorganization Edit

A reorganization of City Center began in May 1975, when the CCMD's interim chairman created a board of governors, which in turn established separate boards of directors for the City Ballet, the City Opera, and the 55th Street theater.[219][229] The board of governors had 12 members, compared to the 41-member board of directors.[194][230] John S. Samuels III became the chairman of the board of governors the same year.[230] The CCMD concentrated its resources on the ballet and opera companies at Lincoln Center. The drama and music companies at the 55th Street theater, no longer subsidized by the CCMD, had already stopped operating.[231]

The Joffrey Ballet, the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater, the American Ballet Theatre, and the Eliot Feld Ballet proposed taking over the 55th Street theater in April 1976, alleging that the CCMD had retained control over the building while forcing the ballet companies to subsidize their own operation.[232] CCMD officials agreed to turn over the 55th Street theater's operation to the City Center 55th Street Theater Foundation, headed by these ballet companies.[233] The plan nearly failed because of disagreements between the CCMD and the dance companies,[234] but the agreement was finalized in August 1976 after months of debate.[235] Subsequently, the 55th Street building was almost entirely controlled by the 55th Street Theater Foundation, led by lawyer Howard Squadron.[53][231] The CCMD, meanwhile, focused on its Lincoln Center operations.[231]

Throughout the late 1970s, the 55th Street theater continued to be used mainly for dance performances,[236] attracting companies such as the Dance Theatre of Harlem.[237][35] City Center's resident dance companies included the Alvin Ailey, Paul Taylor, Merce Cunningham, and Martha Graham companies; this led to the center being known as "America's premier dance theatre".[53] The 55th Street Theater Foundation installed a new stage in 1978, and it began renovating the facade two years later.[237] Because the auditorium's orchestra level was nearly flat, audience members in the first twelve rows reportedly could not see dancers' feet.[35] By 1980, the 55th Street Theater Foundation was profitable, although the ABT and the Feld company had moved out.[237]

1980s Edit

 
View of City Center, with CitySpire rising above it

The Theatrical Assistance Group Foundation converted City Center's basement into a 299-seat off-Broadway theater in early 1981.[46] Squadron received a $700,000 federal grant in mid-1981 to renovate the 55th Street theater,[238][53] but Samuels still wished to redevelop the 55th Street site, prompting criticism from City Center's board.[239] Samuels ultimately resigned in July 1981[240] and was succeeded by Alton Marshall,[236] who himself was succeeded by Martin J. Oppenheimer in 1983.[241][242] Meanwhile, after the 55th Street Theater Foundation had received the federal grant, the foundation announced in early 1982 that they would renovate the theater.[38] Fred Lebensold and Rothzeid, Kaiserman & Thomson designed the project, which ultimately cost $$900,000.[53] The renovation began that June.[39] To improve sightlines, City Center officials removed 186 seats, raised the orchestra level, staggered the seats in each row, and redesigned the aisles.[39][35] In addition, the lobby was expanded; the seats were re-upholstered; a wheelchair ramp was installed; decorations, including the chandeliers, were restored; and the auditorium was repainted. The refurbished theater reopened in October 1982.[39][40]

The Manhattan Theatre Club moved into City Center's basement in 1984,[48][49] and the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission designated City Center as a city landmark that year.[53] The same year, developer Ian Bruce Eichner proposed buying City Center's air rights to obtain additional space for his neighboring CitySpire development.[243][244] Eichner planned to pay the CCMD $11 million, of which $5.5 million would be passed along to the 55th Street Theater Foundation. According to Squadron, this would allow the foundation to expand the cramped stage; construct new storage areas; rebuild the balconies; replace the seats; and add ticket booths, bathrooms, and elevators.[42] Eichner agreed to make improvements to City Center in exchange for the additional space,[243][245] but he had not completed these renovations by 1988, prompting City Center to sue Eichner.[246][247]

Following a separate controversy over CitySpire's height, in 1988, Eichner agreed to build 7,200 square feet (670 m2) of dance studios above a pedestrian arcade at that building's base,[245] which the city approved in early 1989.[248][249] 55th Street Theater Foundation officials contended that the studios were narrow for City Center's dance companies.[250] City Center continued to host ballet and dance shows, as well as events such as the New York International Ballet Competition.[251] City Center's mezzanine was renamed after Robert Joffrey, the head of the Joffrey Ballet, in 1988.[252] In addition, City Center's executive director Anthony Micocci was considering producing musicals at the theater by the late 1980s, after the stage had been renovated.[253][211] Due to continuing disputes over the CitySpire project, the developers of that skyscraper agreed to pay the New York City government $2.1 million; some of the funding was used to renovate City Center's rehearsal rooms.[254] Starting in mid-1990, part of the auditorium was closed for restoration,[255] and Altria began sponsoring dance shows at City Center.[256]

Daykin leadership Edit

Squadron appointed Judith Daykin as City Center's executive director in November 1991, after Micocci resigned.[257][258] The Joffrey Ballet had stopped regularly performing at City Center after 1991 due to a lack of money.[259] By the time Daykin assumed the directorship in 1992, the theater was only hosting 17 weeks of shows per year.[260] Within one year of taking over City Center, Daykin had paid off the center's $750,000 debt, and she had increased fundraising and marketing efforts for the theater.[260] Daykin initiated the Encores! Great American Musicals in Concert, which presented rarely heard musicals starting in 1994.[212][261] Daykin perceived Encores! as an experimental program that she hoped would attract new audiences.[212] Daykin was also credited for turning City Center from a rental hall into an organization that produced its own shows.[260][262] Upon City Center's 50th anniversary in 1993, it still largely hosted ballet and dance companies, including Joffrey Ballet and the Martha Graham, Alvin Ailey, Trisha Brown, and Paul Taylor dance companies; the MTC also presented off-Broadway shows there.[263]

By the late 1990s, the center's Encores! series had become popular.[264][265] According to Daykin, the Encores! series attracted people "who probably hadn't been here in 20 years, if they weren't dance fans".[265] City Center continued to host visiting dance companies like the ABT, which resumed performances there in 1996;[266] it also operated a dance-education program for middle-school students, which served 5,000 pupils per year by 1999.[267] The auditorium had been renovated, but The New York Times reported in 1999 that City Center needed to spend between $8 million and $10 million on repairing the mechanical systems. In addition, the dome was leaking and needed another $3 million in repairs.[17] After Raymond A. Lamontagne succeeded Howard Squadron as the chairman of City Center's board in early 1999, Lamontagne announced that he would create an endowment fund for the center.[268]

Largely because of the changes that Daykin had instituted, the theater was hosting shows 40 weeks per year by 2000. At that point, City Center had a $10 million annual budget, 38 full-time staff members, and hundreds of part-time staff, even as its production costs were increasing.[260] Because City Center's staff were part of a labor union, it cost $200,000 per week to produce a show there, compared to $60,000 for a non-unionized theater such as the Joyce Theater.[256] Consequently, The New York Times wrote in 2003 that City Center was "no longer affordable for many [dance] companies",[269] though the ABT and the Alvin Ailey and Paul Taylor dance companies continued to perform there.[270] The upper balcony was rarely open.[271]

Shuler leadership and renovation Edit

 
The arch at the far western end of the 55th Street facade

In 2003, former Joffrey Ballet dancer Arlene Shuler became president and CEO of City Center.[270] Shuler quickly renamed the venue New York City Center, expanded the board of directors, hired development and marketing teams, and increased the center's annual budget to $12 million.[256] She also launched the Fall for Dance Festival, which sold dance tickets for $10, to attract both audiences and dance companies.[271][272] City Center hired architecture firm Helpern Architects and contractor Nicholson & Galloway in 2005 to repair the theater's leaky roof for $2.8 million.[26] At the end of that year, City Center formed a partnership with the neighboring Carnegie Hall.[273][274] The partnership would have allowed the venues to host each other's dance, music, and theater programs; at the time, City Center was still mostly a rental venue.[275] To accommodate these new programs, Shuler had planned to renovate City Center between 2007 and 2008 for $150 million.[273][274]

The partnership with Carnegie Hall was canceled in early 2007, prompting Shuler to delay City Center's renovation;[275] by mid-2008, Shuler planned to begin renovations at the end of the next year.[276] Shuler also expanded the Encores! program and continued to host dance and off-Broadway shows at City Center, although the Times wrote in 2009 that "Fall for Dance has redefined the theater's identity".[277] A $75 million renovation of City Center finally began in March 2010.[33][278] Designed by Ennead Architects LLP, the work included improved sightlines, improved seating, and a new canopy, as well as restoration of historical elements.[33] To accommodate the theater's 2010–2011 theatrical season work, contractors renovated the center in two phases during 2010 and 2011.[33] The renovation was completed in October 2011 with a ceremony led by mayor Michael Bloomberg.[41][279]

Just before the theater reopened, the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater signed a contract to become City Center's main dance company.[280][281] Two dance and ballet companies left City Center in the early 2010s.[43][281] The Paul Taylor Dance Company left City Center in 2011,[282] and ABT departed the following year, citing City Center's small wing space.[43] City Center temporarily suspended in-person shows in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City.[283] This affected two of the theater's most popular programs;[284] the Encores! series was suspended for two years,[285] while Fall for Dance was held virtually in 2020.[283] After Shuler resigned as City Center's president in 2021,[286][287] Michael S. Rosenberg was appointed as City Center's new director in September 2022.[284][288]

Management and governance Edit

City Center of Music and Drama Inc. Edit

The 55th Street theater was originally controlled by the City Center of Music and Drama Inc. (CCMD),[102][103] which the city government established in July 1943.[93] The City Center for Music and Drama Inc. is the organizational parent of the New York City Ballet and was formerly also the parent company of the New York City Opera,[289] which was liquidated in 2013.[290] During its first two decades, the CCMD was largely synonymous with the 55th Street theater, which for the most part was its only location.[194] The CCMD temporarily operated the International Theatre on Columbus Circle during the 1948–1949 season.[291][292] In January 1965, the CCMD became a member company of Lincoln Center.[191] In subsequent years, the CCMD used other venues such as the ANTA Theatre.[293]

Several of the CCMD's constituent companies are no longer affiliated with City Center or no longer exist. The New York City Symphony performed there from 1944 to about 1948,[138][139] and the New York City Dance Theater only performed at the 55th Street theater during the 1949–1950 season.[143] The City Center Art Gallery operated between 1953 and 1961.[181] Another former constituent company was the City Center Cinematheque, which was proposed in 1970[45] but never formally opened.[223][224]

55th Street Theater Foundation Edit

The City Center 55th Street Theater Foundation took over the 55th Street theater in August 1976,[233] subleasing the theater from the CCMD.[35] The foundation rents out the main auditorium to various performers and leases the basement space to the Manhattan Theatre Club.[50]

New York City Center Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization established in 1976, controls the theater. As of 2023, Arlene Shuler is listed as the president and CEO of New York City Center Inc.[294][295] For the fiscal year that ended in June 2020, the organization recorded $21,340,158 in revenue and $23,620,235 in expenses, for a total net loss of $2,280,077.[295]

Programming Edit

Upon the theater's 75th anniversary in 2018, The New York Times characterized City Center as "a multidisciplinary space for artists in theater, dance and music".[296] From the 1940s to the 1960s, the City Center's resident companies included the CCMD's opera, symphony, drama, dance, and ballet companies,[50] Since the late 20th century, City Center has hosted a variety of dance performances each season.[277] It also hosts events including the Fall for Dance Festival and Encores!.[50]

Dance Edit

In 2004, New York City Center introduced the annual Fall for Dance Festival.[271][272] The festival attracted many young adults, as well as those that had never previously been to City Center or seen dance performances.[297] The theater has also hosted events such as the New York City edition of the Vail International Dance Festival, which began in 2016.[298]

The New York City Center Choreography Fellowship, established during the 2011–2012 season, accepts three fellows per season.[299] Fellows receive a stipend, are given access to rehearsal space, and receive administrative support from City Center officials.[299][300]

Theatre Edit

New York City Center launched its first Encores! Great American Musicals in Concert productions in 1994.[301][302] In its early years, Encores! presented musicals such as Du Barry Was a Lady and Pal Joey.[264][265] The program earned numerous theatrical awards, including from the New York Drama Critics' Circle and the Outer Critics Circle;[268] In 2000, the American Theatre Wing presented a Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre award to City Center for the Encores! series.[303][304] The New York Times described Encores! in 2001 as a "major guardian of America's musical-theater heritage".[305] Under the tenure of Jack Viertel, who directed the series from 2001 to 2019, several Encores! productions transferred to Broadway during the 2000s and 2010s, including After Midnight, The Apple Tree, Finian's Rainbow, and Gypsy.[306] As of 2019, the series is directed by Lear deBessonet.[307]

Encores! Off-Center, dedicated to hosting rarely-heard off-Broadway musicals, premiered in mid-2013.[308] Composer Jeanine Tesori served as the series's first artistic director,[309] while Anne Kauffman has directed the series since 2019.[310] City Center and Jazz at Lincoln Center launched a partnership during the 2011–2012 season, starting with the show Cotton Club Parade.[311][312] These shows are presented separately from the Encores! series.[312]

Former programs Edit

The New Dramatists Committee and City Center formed the Elinor Morgenthau Players and Playwrights Workshop in April 1951, with funding from the family of former U.S. Treasury secretary Henry Morgenthau Jr., whose wife Elinor had been on the CCMD's board.[313][314] The workshop opened in October 1951 and was headquartered on three stories of the City Center building.[315] The workshop itself consisted of 50 regular members and 50 alternate members, who were divided into three groups. Half of the regular members created their own plays and presented them at City Center, while the other regular members and the alternates studied plays by established playwrights.[316]

In celebration of the Metropolitan Museum of Art Centennial, he City Center co-sponsored "Cinémathèque at the Metropolitan Museum", which showed seventy films dating from the medium's first 75 years from July 29 to September 3, 1970.[317] The films were selected by Cinémathèque Française founder and director Henri Langlois, from its archive of more than 50,000 films.[318] The Met exhibition had led to the creation of the City Center Cinematheque, although the CCMD's film division was never formally opened.[224]

See also Edit

References Edit

Notes Edit

  1. ^ Also spelled "Verschleisser"[75]

Citations Edit

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  2. ^ a b c White, Norval & Willensky, Elliot (2000). AIA Guide to New York City (4th ed.). New York: Three Rivers Press. p. 267. ISBN 978-0-8129-3107-5.
  3. ^ a b c White, Norval; Willensky, Elliot; Leadon, Fran (2010). AIA Guide to New York City (5th ed.). New York: Oxford University Press. p. 305. ISBN 978-0-19538-386-7.
  4. ^ a b c "131 West 55 Street, 10019". New York City Department of City Planning. from the original on February 28, 2023. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  5. ^ a b "Shriners to Build Fine club on West 55th St.: Structure Will Cost $750,000 to Build, According to Estimate Made by Architect". New-York Tribune. August 5, 1922. p. 13. ProQuest 576693437.
  6. ^ a b "New Mecca Temple Home; Building in West Fifty-Fifth Street Will Cost $750,000". The New York Times. August 5, 1922. ISSN 0362-4331. from the original on February 28, 2023. Retrieved February 28, 2023.
  7. ^ Gray, Christopher (May 9, 1999). "Streetscapes /57th Street Between Avenue of the Americas and Seventh Avenue; High and Low Notes of a Block With a Musical Bent". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. from the original on November 27, 2020. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  8. ^ "Steinway Hall" (PDF). New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission. November 13, 2001. pp. 6–7. (PDF) from the original on November 9, 2020. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
  9. ^ Federal Writers' Project (1939). New York City Guide. New York: Random House. p. 232. ISBN 978-1-60354-055-1. (Reprinted by Scholarly Press, 1976; often referred to as WPA Guide to New York City.)
  10. ^ "Society House of the American Society of Civil Engineers" (PDF). New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission. December 16, 2008. p. 2. (PDF) from the original on August 23, 2021. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
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  12. ^ a b Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983, p. 4.
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  18. ^ a b c d e f g h Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983, p. 7.
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  20. ^ a b c d e f g Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983, p. 5.
  21. ^ a b c d National Park Service 1984, p. 6.
  22. ^ a b c American Architect and Architecture 1925, p. 173.
  23. ^ a b Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983, pp. 5–6.
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  25. ^ a b c d e f g h i j National Park Service 1984, p. 2.
  26. ^ a b c d e f Collins, Glenn (March 25, 2005). "Fixing a Leaky Roof, and What a Roof!". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. from the original on March 6, 2023. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
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  28. ^ a b c d e f g h i Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983, p. 6.
  29. ^ a b c d e American Architect and Architecture 1925, p. 175.
  30. ^ a b c d National Park Service 1984, p. 3.
  31. ^ Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983, pp. 6–7.
  32. ^ a b c d Batchelder, Roger (December 28, 1924). "5000 Shriners Will March in 5th Avenue: Dedication of Mecca Temple Tomorrow Will Bring Nobles From Many States". Boston Daily Globe. p. 29. ProQuest 498083004.
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  34. ^ a b "Opera and Concert: New Mecca Temple, N. Y., In Field for Concerts". Variety. Vol. 78, no. 7. April 1, 1925. p. 23. ProQuest 1505651409.
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  36. ^ a b American Architect and Architecture 1925, p. 177.
  37. ^ American Architect and Architecture 1925, pp. 177, 180.
  38. ^ a b c Lawson, Carol (March 16, 1982). "City Center Renovation Set for Summer". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. from the original on March 4, 2023. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
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  44. ^ American Architect and Architecture 1925, pp. 173, 175.
  45. ^ a b c Thompson, Howard (February 14, 1970). "A City Center Cinema Planned Using Cinematheque's Archives". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. from the original on March 3, 2023. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  46. ^ a b "The Dance Umbrella opens". Newsday. March 31, 1981. p. 123. from the original on March 4, 2023. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  47. ^ Freedman, Samuel G. (August 8, 1984). "Cramped Theater Club Seeks City Center Site". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. from the original on March 4, 2023. Retrieved March 4, 2023.
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  50. ^ a b c d e f Myers, Eric (July 12, 2007). "A Palace for the People". Playbill. from the original on March 6, 2023. Retrieved March 5, 2023.
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  52. ^ a b "Plan Your Visit". Manhattan Theatre Club. September 28, 2022. from the original on March 4, 2023. Retrieved March 4, 2023.
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  55. ^ a b Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983, p. 16.
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  58. ^ a b Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983, p. 17.
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york, city, center, previously, known, mecca, temple, city, center, music, drama, 55th, street, theater, performing, arts, center, west, 55th, street, between, sixth, seventh, avenues, midtown, manhattan, neighborhood, york, city, developed, shriners, between,. New York City Center previously known as the Mecca Temple City Center of Music and Drama and the New York City Center 55th Street Theater 2 is a performing arts center at 131 West 55th Street between Sixth and Seventh Avenues in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City Developed by the Shriners between 1922 and 1924 as a Masonic house of worship it has operated as a performing arts complex owned by the government of New York City City Center is a performing home for several major dance companies as well as the Manhattan Theatre Club MTC and it hosts the Encores musical theater series and the Fall for Dance Festival annually New York City CenterNew York City Center in 2010Address131 W 55th St New York New YorkUnited StatesOwnerCity of New YorkOperatorCity Center 55th Street Theater FoundationTypePerforming arts centerOff Broadway MTC CapacityMain stage 2 257Stage I 299Stage II 150ConstructionOpened1924 building 1984 Stages I amp II Years active1943 presentArchitectHarry P Knowles and Clinton amp RussellWebsitewww wbr nycitycenter wbr orgMecca TempleU S National Register of Historic PlacesNew York City Landmark No 1234Coordinates40 45 50 N 73 58 46 W 40 76389 N 73 97944 W 40 76389 73 97944Arealess than one acreArchitectural styleMoorishNRHP reference No 84002788 1 NYCL No 1234Significant datesAdded to NRHPSeptember 7 1984Designated NYCLApril 12 1983The facility was designed by Harry P Knowles and Clinton and Russell in the Moorish Revival style and is divided into two parts The southern section houses a main auditorium with 2 257 seats across three levels this auditorium could originally fit over four thousand people but it has been downsized over the years Immediately beneath the main auditorium are two smaller theaters one of which is used by MTC these occupy what was originally a banquet hall This section contains an ornate sandstone facade with an alfiz like entryway made of terracotta as well as a dome measuring about 104 feet 32 m across The northern section is much simpler in design with a largely windowless brick facade and contains four rehearsal studios and a 12 story office tower The Shriners decided in 1921 to construct the 55th Street building after having outgrown their previous headquarters and the new building was dedicated on December 29 1924 The Great Depression prompted the Shriners to downsize their activities in the 1930s and relocate out of the building entirely by 1940 New York City mayor Fiorello La Guardia and New York City Council president Newbold Morris established the City Center of Music and Drama Inc CCMD to operate the building as a municipal performing arts venue which reopened on December 11 1943 In its early years City Center housed the City Opera and City Ballet as well as symphony dance theater drama and art companies After the City Opera and Ballet relocated to Lincoln Center in the 1960s the CCMD continued to operate the building until 1976 when the City Center 55th Street Theater Foundation took over operation City Center largely hosted dance performances during the late 20th century although it also began hosting off Broadway shows when the MTC moved to City Center in 1984 The venue was renovated in the 1980s and again in the 2010s Contents 1 Site 2 Architecture 2 1 Form and facade 2 1 1 55th Street facade 2 1 1 1 Domed roof 2 1 2 56th Street facade 2 2 Interior 2 2 1 Main auditorium 2 2 2 Basement 2 2 3 Offices 3 History 3 1 Mecca Temple 3 1 1 Development 3 1 2 Shriners usage 3 2 City Center of Music and Drama operation 3 2 1 Opening and early years 3 2 2 Lease renewals and financial issues 3 2 3 Relocation of the ballet and opera 3 2 4 Plans for 55th Street theater 3 3 55th Street Theater Foundation takeover 3 3 1 Reorganization 3 3 2 1980s 3 3 3 Daykin leadership 3 3 4 Shuler leadership and renovation 4 Management and governance 4 1 City Center of Music and Drama Inc 4 2 55th Street Theater Foundation 5 Programming 5 1 Dance 5 2 Theatre 5 3 Former programs 6 See also 7 References 7 1 Notes 7 2 Citations 7 3 Sources 8 External linksSite EditNew York City Center originally the Mecca Temple is at 131 West 55th Street between Sixth Avenue and Seventh Avenue in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City 3 The building s L shaped land lot covers 25 153 square feet 2 336 8 m2 extending 200 feet 61 m northward to 56th Street 4 with frontage of 150 feet 46 m along 55th Street and 100 feet 30 m on 56th Street 5 6 City Center abuts the CitySpire office building to the west and 125 West 55th Street to the east 4 3 Immediately to the north are Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall Tower Russian Tea Room and Metropolitan Tower from west to east Other nearby buildings include 140 West 57th Street 130 West 57th Street and the Parker New York hotel to the northeast as well as the 55th Street Playhouse to the southwest and 1345 Avenue of the Americas to the southeast 4 3 The neighborhood was historically part of an artistic hub that developed around the two blocks of West 57th Street from Sixth Avenue west to Broadway during the late 19th and early 20th centuries following the opening of Carnegie Hall 7 8 9 Several buildings in the area were constructed as residences for artists and musicians such as 130 and 140 West 57th Street the Rodin Studios and the Osborne Apartments as well as the demolished Sherwood Studios and Rembrandt In addition the area contained the headquarters of organizations such as the American Fine Arts Society the Lotos Club and the American Society of Civil Engineers 10 When the Mecca Temple was constructed in 1923 the city block had contained garages stables and a school 11 12 The lots on the southern part of the building s site at 131 133 West 55th Street had been used by Famous Players Lasky Corporation as a movie studio 13 14 The two lots on the northern part of the site at 132 and 134 West 56th Street contained horse stables 15 16 Architecture EditNew York City Center was built by the Shriners between 1922 and 1924 as the Mecca Temple a Masonic house of worship 2 17 The building was designed by architects Harry P Knowles a Master Mason who died before its completion in conjunction with the firm of Clinton and Russell 2 17 The building s design is Neo Moorish although sources have described the 55th Street wing as Moresco Baroque and delightfully absurd 18 An article for the Architectural Forum characterized the Shriners clubhouses in general as Saracenic 19 The building contains a steel superstructure 20 21 22 The roof is carried by a large 65 short ton 58 long ton 59 t girder measuring 92 5 feet 28 2 m long and 13 feet 4 0 m wide The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission LPC wrote that at the time it was the largest piece of steel ever installed in a New York City building 20 Form and facade Edit In keeping with the Shriners heritage the City Center building s facade incorporates several motifs inspired by Islamic architecture 23 Knowles had to work around the irregularly shaped site and he needed to accommodate meeting rooms an auditorium and a banquet hall As such he placed the clubrooms and lodge rooms on the northern half of the site which was narrower and faced 56th Street 20 21 The northern portion of the building at 12 stories high is also taller than the rest of the building 24 25 The auditorium and banquet hall were placed on the wider southern half facing 55th Street since these spaces were to be used much more frequently 20 21 The southern part of the building has a terracotta tiled rooftop dome 26 55th Street facade Edit Main entrance on 55th StreetThe southern part of the building which contains the theater is largely clad with ashlar sandstone and contains a large pointed arch spanning nearly the entirety of the facade 20 25 Early plans called for the facade to be laid in contrasting shades of sandstone ultimately the building was clad with golden Ohio sandstone The word Mecca was originally inscribed at the top of the large arch 17 The 55th Street elevation also contains multicolored glazed terracotta tiles manufactured by New York Architectural Terra Cotta 23 In the early 2010s a glass and steel marquee was installed above the entrance 27 The entrance consists of an alfiz with an arcade of nine horseshoe arches 20 25 The arches are surrounded by a terracotta frieze with ochre green and blue foliate motifs Each of the horseshoe arches in the arcade is supported by pink veined and gray veined granite columns and contain voussoirs made of glazed ochre tiles The tympanum of each arch has multicolored tiles some of which depict a scimitar and a crescent 25 28 There are also metal lamps within the arches 25 The entryway s design reflects the arrangement of the staircases and lobby inside 28 The five central arches are grouped together and lead to the theater s lobby The two horseshoe arches on either side lead to staircases that ascend to the theater s mezzanine and first balcony On either side of the arcade are double height sandstone arches which connect to staircases that lead down to the basement and up to the second balcony 25 28 Each of the arcade s five central doorways is topped by a pair of arched windows on the mezzanine level these windows are separated by engaged columns and surrounded by an extension of the terracotta frieze The five center bays are flanked by blue terracotta pilasters and topped by a muqarnas cornice above the mezzanine level 25 28 The upper portion of the 55th Street facade is relatively plain in design except for lancet windows on the sides 25 The uppermost part of the facade is stepped upward at its center following the curve of the domed roof and is topped by a large cornice with dentils The corners are chamfered at the top this was intended to serve as a transition between the cube shaped lower stories and the domed roof 20 25 Domed roof Edit The theater s domed roof measures 104 ft 32 m wide and 50 ft 15 m tall with 28 475 pieces of Spanish roof tile 26 Structurally the roof is composed of four main ribs between these are twelve smaller ribs which are supported at their tops by a ring just below the top of the dome 29 Unlike other domes in the United States it was designed as a true sphere 26 The lower half of each rib is composed of two chords while the upper half is made of I beams measuring 15 inches 380 mm thick The inner chord of the dome rises 37 5 feet 11 4 m and has a diameter of 88 feet 27 m by contrast the outer chord has a radius of about 54 feet 16 m 29 The dome s outer surface consists of a 3 inch 7 6 cm layer of a material called Nailcrete which was spread across metal lath the terracotta tiles were then attached to the Nailcrete 29 The tiles were originally painted green and were glazed 25 by the 1990s the roof tiles were colored red 17 The tiles gradually narrow near the top of the dome which also makes City Center the only structure in the Northeastern United States with a dome of graduated clay tiles 26 The top of the dome originally was decorated with a scimitar and a crescent 24 The roof was renovated in the mid 2000s The refurbished roof includes a 1 8 inch 3 2 mm waterproof membrane underneath each tile a steel frame above the membrane and 8 000 stainless steel anchors that connect the tiles to the steel frame 26 56th Street facade Edit 56th Street facadeThe 56th Street elevation of City Center s facade was designed in a substantially different manner than that on 55th Street as the northern part of the building was designed for a different purpose The facade contains elements of an abstract classical style At ground level the facade is made of limestone and contains five arches The outermost arches are the widest and are connected directly to stage rear as is the center arch which is slightly narrower The second outermost arches on either side are the narrowest and are flanked by lanterns on either side 28 30 The upper 11 stories are clad with yellow brick The third story contains three windows which contain sandstone moldings balconies and pediments 28 30 All the decoration above the third story was made of buff colored terracotta 28 18 The stories above originally contained the Shriners lodge rooms so Knowles chose not to add windows as was typical for office buildings of the time Instead on the fourth through ninth stories the center of the facade contains six vertical piers which are made of projecting bricks that are angled outward 28 31 The side elevations of the northern half of the building contain even less decoration they largely consist of brick walls with some scattered window openings 28 Interior Edit Originally the Mecca Temple included a three level auditorium with space for 5 000 people in total 22 32 The building also contained a banquet room in the basement which could fit 5 000 people and three lodge rooms on the upper stories which could accommodate another 3 000 people 32 By 2010 the building contained 12 stories of offices a main auditorium with 2 753 seats two smaller auditoriums in the basement and four studios 33 The main doorways on 55th Street lead to a ticket lobby where gold metal doors surrounded by ceramic tiles lead to the main auditorium 30 In 2011 the lobbies were rearranged so that audiences entered the auditorium from the sides rather than from the rear The modern day lobby is divided into outer and inner sections The outer lobby has a bar while the inner lobby has screens for video installations which are changed three times a year 27 Main auditorium Edit The original seating capacity of the main auditorium is disputed but has been variously cited as 4 080 34 or 4 400 32 According to the Boston Daily Globe the main auditorium originally had a foyer with space for another 600 people bringing the total capacity to 5 000 32 These seats were spread across a ground story orchestra level and two steeply raked balconies 17 in contrast to the balconies the orchestra was originally nearly flat 35 36 Both balcony levels are supported by girders that are cantilevered from the rear of the auditorium 37 The first balcony level is supported by a pair of diagonal girders on either end because of its unusual shape The second balcony level also known as the gallery is cantilevered above the first balcony and the orchestra the center of this level is supported by a truss measuring 92 5 feet 28 2 m long 36 During the mid 20th century the seating capacity was reduced to approximately 2 932 38 During a 1982 renovation City Center officials removed another 186 seats from the orchestra reducing it to 2 746 seats 39 40 The 1982 renovation also included raising the entire orchestra and raking the first ten rows 38 The front rows of the rebuilt orchestra were raised 10 inches 250 mm while the rear rows were raised by as much as 4 feet 6 inches 1 37 m 35 City Center was again downsized in 2011 to approximately 2 250 seats 27 41 This project involved removing six rows of seats increasing the slope of the orchestra level widening each seat by 2 inches and reupholstering them in blue and green 27 The proscenium arch and the ceiling were decorated in the Islamic style with such motifs as stalactites and honeycombs 17 The main auditorium s interior contained Moorish motifs such as multi pointed stars lancet windows and large chandeliers hanging from molded ceiling plasterwork 30 After the city government moved into the theater in 1943 the space was repainted white because it was easier to maintain 27 During the mid 20th century the auditorium was decorated in red green blue and gilded rococo but it was repainted again in beige and taupe in 1982 35 The original color scheme was restored in 2011 along with the murals on the ceiling of the mezzanine lobby 27 41 The auditorium s original design focused the audience s attention at the center of the stage but this design also created difficult sightlines one observer likened the design to watching a television screen 27 Variety magazine stated that the auditorium s stage could fit 100 musicians 34 Unlike traditional theaters the stage originally did not have any wing space for performers 42 even after the theater was renovated in 2011 the wing space was too small to accommodate certain types of productions 43 To accommodate the Shriners who frequently smoked in the Mecca Temple 18 there was an air intake on the auditorium s roof 29 18 Fresh air traveled from the intake to a fan and heater room above the auditorium s proscenium and air was then distributed through the floor slabs of each level 29 A lighting booth was also installed in the auditorium in 2011 27 Basement Edit The basement originally contained a banquet hall This space did not contain columns Instead it was spanned by a set of deep lattice trusses which were flanked by deep plate girders these formed the floor of the auditorium 22 The space between the trusses contained ducts that supplied fresh air to the auditorium and basement a system of exhaust pipes for the basement and other utilities 44 After an attempt in 1970 to convert City Center s basement into a cinematheque 45 the basement became a 299 seat off Broadway theater called The Space in 1981 46 When The Space opened it was only occasionally used by dance companies 47 The Manhattan Theatre Club MTC moved to The Space in 1984 48 49 and divided the basement into two auditoriums 50 As of 2022 update MTC operates two off Broadway spaces in the basement known as Stage I and Stage II 51 52 Stage I contains 299 seats while Stage II contains 150 seats 53 MTC also operates a coatroom restroom and members lounge on the landing of the staircase between the basement and the lobby 52 Offices Edit The three lodge rooms were placed in the northern wing of the building 17 When the Mecca Temple was converted to the City Center the lodge rooms became rehearsal studios 17 50 During the 1950s scripts for the television show Your Show of Shows starring Sid Caesar were written in one of the offices on the sixth floor 50 The theater s modern day rehearsal studios occupy the upper stories 27 History EditMecca Temple Edit The City Center building on 55th Street was constructed as the Mecca Temple the headquarters of the Shriners The order s previous headquarters had been located at Sixth Avenue and 23rd Street since 1875 21 54 The order began hosting large events at Carnegie Hall in 1891 but the hall banned smoking 54 even though many Shriners enjoyed smoking large cigars during their meetings 55 Although the Shriners moved to the 71st Regiment Armory on Park Avenue in 1905 the armory was not well suited for theatrical productions The Shriners also had trouble booking a theater except during the workday 54 By 1911 the Shriners owned a converted brownstone row house at 107 West 45th Street and they also held large meetings in the concert hall of Madison Square Garden 56 The row house contained a grill room on the ground floor a lounge and committee room on the second floor executive offices on the third floor and an assembly room on the fourth floor 57 Development Edit A bond issued in 1922 to raise funds for the construction of the Mecca TempleBy the early 1920s the Shriners had outgrown their 45th Street location and wished to build a new headquarters prior to their 50th anniversary in 1922 57 This prompted 1 500 Shriners to vote in favor of a new temple in April 1921 54 The Shriners planned to fund the new temple by issuing bonds and by constructing an office building above the temple 57 The order issued 1 5 million in bonds 58 and its 11 080 members had purchased 1 million worth of bonds by the end of 1921 allowing the Shriners to build a standalone temple 57 The rest of the bond issue was used to pay expenses taxes and interest on the mortgage loan 58 Mecca Temple paid Yale University 400 000 for the lots at 131 135 West 55th Street in Midtown Manhattan in December 1921 13 14 Yale in turn had acquired the site from William S and Mary E Mason three months beforehand 55 The sale was finalized in January 1922 the Shriners hoped that their new temple would increase land values in the surrounding area 12 The Shriners bought two stables at 133 and 135 West 56th Street from George C Mason that April for 140 000 15 16 H P Knowles filed plans for a house of worship on 55th Street with the Manhattan Bureau of Buildings in August 1922 The structure was to cost 750 000 and was to contain a meeting hall in the basement a three level auditorium three studios and three stories of offices 5 6 The auditorium was to contain 5 000 seats which would allow it to be rented out for events such as concerts 59 James Stewart amp Co was hired as the building s general contractor 60 The Shriners hosted a parade on October 13 1923 after which Arthur S Tompkins a New York state judge and the Grand Master of Masons in New York State laid the building s cornerstone on 56th Street At the time the building was planned to cost 2 5 million 61 62 The Mecca Temple received a 1 million mortgage loan from Manufacturers Trust in July 1924 63 64 The building was dedicated on December 29 1924 with the invocation offered by Episcopal bishop William T Manning contemporary sources characterized the building as a mosque 24 65 Shriners usage Edit The Mecca Temple s auditorium first opened to the general public in May 1925 when it hosted a fashion show 66 67 By then the building was complete except for interior decorations and the installation of seats on the first floor 66 John Philip Sousa s band performed in the temple s first public concert that October 68 69 and the New York Symphony Orchestra relocated its performances to the auditorium from the Aeolian Building on 42nd Street 70 During the 1920s the Mecca Temple also hosted events such as a meeting of post office workers 71 a memorial service for American Revolutionary War military commander Casimir Pulaski 72 and the meetings of Congregation Rodeph Sholom 73 Unlike other Shriners temples which were tax exempt mainly philanthropic concerns the Mecca Temple earned money from renting its auditorium out so it was not tax exempt 18 By the 1930s the Great Depression had forced many fraternal groups such as the Shriners to reduce the scope of their activities 17 The Mecca Holding Company the Mecca Temple s original owner transferred the building s title to a group of Shriners trustees in 1933 18 The Fides Opera Company led by Cesare Sodero began performing at the Mecca Temple the same year 74 Irving Verschleiser a operator of the Central Opera House on the Upper East Side leased the building s ballroom and kitchens in 1934 with plans to convert it into the Mecca Temple Casino 75 Aside from opera dance theatrical productions and concerts the auditorium s events in the 1930s included a Federal Theatre Project circus 76 a protest meeting attended by over one fifth of the city s Armenian population 77 and a speech by former Greek prime minister Alexandros Papanastasiou 78 Manufacturers Trust foreclosed on the building in 1937 after the Shriners failed to make mortgage payments Verschleiser then took over the building and began operating it through his company Mecca Temple Casino Inc 18 79 Verschleiser failed to make a profit on the building and the 130 West 56th Street Corporation took over in 1939 18 The Shriners had stopped using the building completely by 1940 80 A writer for The New York Times reported that the auditorium had been relegated to political oratory all sorts of organizational harangues and resolutions and second rate prize fights 80 Opera and ballet impresario Max Rabinoff announced in August 1941 that he would convert the auditorium into the Cosmopolitan Opera House and that he would convert the office section into the People s Art Center 81 82 Rabinoff planned to leave the exterior intact while remodeling the interior for ballet opera and concerts 82 The theater had reopened by November 1941 83 It hosted shows such as a series of four programs by the NBC Symphony Orchestra 83 the operettas The Gypsy Baron 84 and Beggar Student 85 and a set of concerts to raise money for war stamps issued during World War II 86 City Center of Music and Drama operation Edit By 1942 the 130 West 56th Street Corporation had not paid taxes for several months and the New York City Treasurer s office was acting as the receiver for the theater and office building 87 That September the New York City government bought the building for 100 000 at a foreclosure auction 87 88 The city was offering the Mecca Temple for rent the next month 89 Mayor Fiorello La Guardia and New York City Council president Newbold Morris began planning to convert the Mecca Temple into a theater In March 1943 La Guardia named a committee to study these plans 90 91 La Guardia and Morris cofounded the City Center of Music and Drama CCMD with tax lawyer Morton Baum who was described as the financial production and political brain that held it together 92 The CCMD was to present opera concerts dance ballet and theatrical productions at the Mecca Temple 93 The men wished to provide cultural entertainment at popular prices with tickets costing as little as 1 94 To attract working class audiences La Guardia proposed that shows start at 5 30 p m after the end of the workday 95 The New York Supreme Court approved the articles of incorporation for the City Center of Music and Drama Inc in July 1943 95 La Guardia and Morris appointed a board of 24 people to operate the CCMD 96 The city government hired Aymar Embury II the same month to renovate the Mecca Temple s auditorium 97 98 City officials filed plans for the renovation with the city s Department of Buildings that August 99 and the Board of Estimate voted to provide 65 000 for the building s renovation 100 101 The next month the Board of Estimate gave the CCMD a permit to stage live shows within the Mecca Temple 102 103 Due to material shortages during World War II the city government postponed the renovation of the theater s interior 104 Harry Friedgut was appointed as City Center s first managing director in September 1943 105 106 while Morris served as chairman of the CCMD 107 The Mecca Temple was officially renamed City Center shortly afterward 108 109 The CCMD began paying 2 000 a month in rent that October before the theater had formally opened 110 Opening and early years Edit Interior viewCity Center opened on December 11 1943 with a concert by the New York Philharmonic and a birthday party for La Guardia 111 112 The publicist Jean Dalrymple was appointed as volunteer director of public relations 113 114 The first theatrical show was a revival of Rachel Crothers s play Susan and God on December 13 1943 113 115 Initially City Center presented revivals of successful Broadway shows to attract as many visitors as possible 96 Performers who appeared at City Center between the 1940s and 1960s included Helen Hayes Montgomery Clift Orson Welles Gwen Verdon Charlton Heston Marcel Marceau Bob Fosse Nicholas Magallanes Francisco Moncion Tallulah Bankhead Vincent Price Jessica Tandy Hume Cronyn Uta Hagen and Christopher Walken 116 The newly established New York City Opera started performing at City Center in February 1944 under director Laszlo Halasz 117 the New York City Symphony Orchestra led by Leopold Stokowski debuted at City Center the next month 118 NBC initially sponsored all of City Center s concerts and music performances 119 The theater s first several shows were profitable even though ticket prices were capped at 1 65 120 By the end of the first operating season in May 1944 the theater had grossed over 414 000 from 171 performances which had attracted 346 000 guests City Center recorded a net profit of 844 110 121 This prompted City Center officials to make plans for their own ballet company and repertory theatre company 122 Friedgut resigned as managing director in July 1944 citing disputes with Morris 107 Although attendance at City Center doubled to 750 000 during the 1944 1945 season the center recorded a net loss of 36 000 in part because of the orchestra company s large expenses 123 124 The Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo began performing at City Center in late 1944 125 and remained there for five years 126 127 To prevent a future mayoral administration from shuttering City Center 128 129 the CCMD renewed its lease of the building in July 1945 for five years paying at least 10 000 a year 130 131 City Center planned to establish a theatrical company for the 1945 1946 season which would present revivals of plays 132 during that season the center hosted 614 000 guests 133 Officials installed an air conditioning system in the auditorium in mid 1946 134 City Center remained popular in the late 1940s with over 750 000 guests during the 1946 1947 season 133 135 Although the city government no longer financially supported the center City Center sold over 1 million worth of tickets per year 133 City Center accommodated about 578 000 guests during the 1947 1948 season 136 and around 576 000 guests the following season 137 The New York City Symphony stopped performing at City Center after that season 138 mainly due to the theater s poor acoustics 139 George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein s Ballet Society became a resident organization of the CCMD in 1948 and was accordingly renamed the New York City Ballet Company 140 The CCMD established the New York City Theater Company the same season 96 The New York City Dance Theater performed at City Center during the 1949 1950 season 141 142 although it did not schedule any performances afterward 143 Despite grossing over 1 2 million from opera ballet theatre and dance performances during the 1949 1950 season the CCMD recorded a net operating loss of 3 517 during that season 144 Lease renewals and financial issues Edit Several months before City Center s lease expired in 1950 musicians labor union Local 802 had proposed buying the building for 850 000 145 Theatrical critic Brooks Atkinson wrote that all of the City Center s programs lose money But the losses are not calamitous because of the theater s relatively cheap tickets and because of various large donations 146 Uncertainty over City Center s lease caused the 1950 1951 season to be delayed as the CCMD could not book shows until its lease had been renewed 147 148 After mayor William O Dwyer pledged his support of City Center the Board of Estimate renewed the CCMD s lease in February 1950 The CCMD agreed to cap ticket prices at 2 50 and its rent was set at 1 5 percent of its annual gross receipts 149 150 City Center s deficit grew to over 72 000 during the 1950 1951 season 151 By mid 1951 Baum considered hosting dramas only during the winter as attendance was generally lower during the spring Low patronage during the summer had already prompted him to stop staging musicals in July and August 152 The CCMD announced plans in March 1952 to convert one of the center s emergency exit hallways into a visual art gallery 153 the space would exhibit contemporary sculptures and visual art 154 Kirstein was appointed as City Center s managing director later that year 155 CCMD officials citing increasing production costs asked the New York State Legislature in early 1953 to pass a law allowing the organization to lease the building for 1 annually 156 157 The law was enacted later the same year 158 The CCMD began raising 200 000 in April 1953 as part of its first ever fundraiser 159 and the Rockefeller Foundation also donated 200 000 to fund the ballet and opera companies for three years 160 161 The 75 by 15 ft 22 9 by 4 6 m visual art gallery opened in September 1953 162 163 it hosted ten exhibitions of 50 canvases per year 164 The building needed repairs by the mid 1950s and the city government did not always fix these issues promptly To convince the city government to fix the leaking roof Morris invited mayor Vincent R Impellitteri to the City Center on a rainy night the mayor s program soon became soaked and the roof was fixed shortly afterward 165 166 The CCMD continued to lose money recording a deficit of 225 000 for the 1953 1954 season even as annual attendance had reached 962 000 167 An organization called the Friends of City Center was created in January 1954 selling annual memberships to raise money 168 The Friends sold 3 000 memberships mostly to small dollar donors it was reorganized after losing 25 000 169 The City Center Light Opera Company hosted its first performances in May 1954 170 Kirstein resigned as City Center s managing director in January 1955 because he and the board of directors could not agree on basic policy Whereas Kirstein wanted to spend more money to stage experimental shows the board wished to stage more established shows and reduce its expenses 171 The Board of Estimate voted that February to lease the building to the CCMD for 1 per year 158 The CCMD saw an 220 000 operating loss during the 1955 1956 season although grants and donations covered much of this cost 172 After the City Opera suspended the beginning of its 1957 season due to financial deficits 173 Kirstein unsuccessfully proposed reorganizing City Center and establishing a new opera company 174 The CCMD had received 281 000 in gifts by the end of the 1956 1957 season saving it from insolvency although it still operated at a net loss 175 176 After the 1956 1957 season City Center s drama company stopped performing for several seasons 164 The following season the CCMD recorded an operating deficit of over 550 000 although donations covered almost all of this deficit 177 The Friends of City Center had 2 670 members who paid between 10 and 1 000 per year 169 Further losses during the 1959 1960 season prompted officials to increase the center s maximum ticket prices by mid 1960 178 Relocation of the ballet and opera Edit Entrance to City Center at nightAs early as 1959 the CCMD was negotiating to move all of its shows from the former Mecca Temple to the newly developed Lincoln Center on the Upper West Side of Manhattan 179 180 The CCMD closed City Center s art gallery in May 1961 as the gallery had been unprofitable and had not attracted sponsorships At the time the gallery attracted 2 500 monthly visitors and it had displayed 3 600 artworks one eighth of which had been sold 181 Donors reduced the organization s operating deficit to 12 000 for the 1961 1962 season 182 and the CCMD had a 37 500 surplus the next season although the City Opera s losses soon eliminated this surplus 183 In advance of the 1964 New York World s Fair the City Ballet announced that it would move to the New York State Theater at Lincoln Center after the 1963 1964 season 184 185 By the CCMD s 20th anniversary in December 1943 the theater had received 16 million total guests over twenty 40 week seasons 127 During the 1963 1964 season the CCMD recorded a net profit for the first time in 18 years after donors covered that season s operating deficits 186 Meanwhile the CCMD was still contemplating relocating its opera light opera and drama companies to the New York State Theater 187 although Lincoln Center and CCMD officials could not agree on who would control that theater 188 189 By then Variety magazine described the original City Center on 55th Street as having many faulty seat locations and a shallow stage 189 The organization ultimately agreed in January 1965 to permanently relocate its ballet and opera companies to the New York State Theater The CCMD would relaunch its drama company and would continue to host light opera and drama at the 55th Street theater 138 190 The CCMD became a member company of Lincoln Center in 1965 191 and signed a sublease for the New York State Theater in January 1966 192 Although the organization recorded a 1 7 million operating deficit during the 1965 1966 season due to the costs of the second theater this was offset by nearly 2 million in donations 193 Plans for 55th Street theater Edit The CCMD continued to subsidize the 55th Street theater after relocating its ballet and opera companies 194 After Newbold Morris retired in 1966 Baum was appointed as the chairman of City Center s board of directors 195 The same year the Robert Joffrey Ballet became a resident dance company and was renamed the City Center Joffrey Ballet 196 relocating to 55th Street that September 197 The CCMD s drama company also resumed performances at the 55th Street theater during the 1966 1967 season having been inactive for nine years 198 The city government donated 500 000 for a renovation of the 55th Street building in 1967 199 This money was used to overhaul the air conditioning system repaint the interior and replace wiring 165 199 After Baum died in early 1968 the CCMD s board appointed an executive committee to temporarily take over the organization s operations 200 Later the same year the CCMD appointed Norman Singer as the organization s general administrator 201 and Richard Clurman as the chairman of its board 202 203 Under Clurman s leadership the CCMD proposed relocating from its 55th Street theater which officials felt was obsolete As part of the proposed City Center Plaza the CCMD wished to build four theaters each with 400 to 800 seats on the site of the third Madison Square Garden MSG on Eighth Avenue 204 While negotiations for the MSG site were ongoing CCMD officials announced in early 1970 that they would convert the 55th Street theater s basement into the City Center Cinematheque with one or more movie theaters and a film museum 45 In January 1971 the CCMD proposed taking over Lincoln Center s Vivian Beaumont Theater and renovating it 205 To fund the 5 2 million cost of renovating the Beaumont the CCMD planned to demolish the 55th Street theater and replace it with an office skyscraper containing a 3 000 seat theater 206 207 The CCMD withdrew its plan for the Beaumont that December 208 but it continued to contemplate the demolition of the 55th Street theater 209 210 City Center stopped producing drama altogether in 1969 211 212 although Singer proposed creating a drama company in early 1972 210 Before the 1972 1973 season began two companies joined the CCMD the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater which became the Alvin Ailey City Center Dance Theater 213 and the Acting Company which became the City Center Acting Company 214 By October 1972 the CCMD had recorded a total deficit of 1 3 million 215 The organization had recorded a net operating loss of 3 7 million for the 1971 1972 season but it had not received enough grants and donations to offset these losses 215 which grew during the next year 216 Although the Ford Foundation gave 500 000 each to the CCMD s ballet and opera companies in early 1973 the CCMD had to drastically reduce funding for the Joffrey Ballet and for the proposed Cinematheque 217 Later that year the Board of Estimate extended the theater s lease for another 52 years 218 By the 1970s the CCMD was subsidizing the ballet and opera at Lincoln Center as well as the Joffrey Ballet the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater the Acting Company and the Young People s Theater at 55th Street 219 220 The CCMD also subsidized the Cinematheque which had leased space under the Queensboro Bridge in 1973 221 222 the Cinematheque never opened due to a lack of money 223 224 In addition the CCMD co produced the American Ballet Theatre ABT 220 CCMD officials considered selling the 55th Street theater in 1974 to a developer who planned to erect a residential and commercial skyscraper on much of the block 225 The 55th Street theater had hosted dance performances nearly exclusively for several years so the CCMD planned to construct a dance theater in the proposed skyscraper 226 Singer resigned as the organization s director that July 220 227 By then the center s net deficit had grown to 4 million 220 The CCMD ultimately decided to retain the existing building in early 1975 228 55th Street Theater Foundation takeover Edit Detail of the ceiling with one of the lights and arabesque motifsReorganization Edit A reorganization of City Center began in May 1975 when the CCMD s interim chairman created a board of governors which in turn established separate boards of directors for the City Ballet the City Opera and the 55th Street theater 219 229 The board of governors had 12 members compared to the 41 member board of directors 194 230 John S Samuels III became the chairman of the board of governors the same year 230 The CCMD concentrated its resources on the ballet and opera companies at Lincoln Center The drama and music companies at the 55th Street theater no longer subsidized by the CCMD had already stopped operating 231 The Joffrey Ballet the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater the American Ballet Theatre and the Eliot Feld Ballet proposed taking over the 55th Street theater in April 1976 alleging that the CCMD had retained control over the building while forcing the ballet companies to subsidize their own operation 232 CCMD officials agreed to turn over the 55th Street theater s operation to the City Center 55th Street Theater Foundation headed by these ballet companies 233 The plan nearly failed because of disagreements between the CCMD and the dance companies 234 but the agreement was finalized in August 1976 after months of debate 235 Subsequently the 55th Street building was almost entirely controlled by the 55th Street Theater Foundation led by lawyer Howard Squadron 53 231 The CCMD meanwhile focused on its Lincoln Center operations 231 Throughout the late 1970s the 55th Street theater continued to be used mainly for dance performances 236 attracting companies such as the Dance Theatre of Harlem 237 35 City Center s resident dance companies included the Alvin Ailey Paul Taylor Merce Cunningham and Martha Graham companies this led to the center being known as America s premier dance theatre 53 The 55th Street Theater Foundation installed a new stage in 1978 and it began renovating the facade two years later 237 Because the auditorium s orchestra level was nearly flat audience members in the first twelve rows reportedly could not see dancers feet 35 By 1980 the 55th Street Theater Foundation was profitable although the ABT and the Feld company had moved out 237 1980s Edit View of City Center with CitySpire rising above itThe Theatrical Assistance Group Foundation converted City Center s basement into a 299 seat off Broadway theater in early 1981 46 Squadron received a 700 000 federal grant in mid 1981 to renovate the 55th Street theater 238 53 but Samuels still wished to redevelop the 55th Street site prompting criticism from City Center s board 239 Samuels ultimately resigned in July 1981 240 and was succeeded by Alton Marshall 236 who himself was succeeded by Martin J Oppenheimer in 1983 241 242 Meanwhile after the 55th Street Theater Foundation had received the federal grant the foundation announced in early 1982 that they would renovate the theater 38 Fred Lebensold and Rothzeid Kaiserman amp Thomson designed the project which ultimately cost 900 000 53 The renovation began that June 39 To improve sightlines City Center officials removed 186 seats raised the orchestra level staggered the seats in each row and redesigned the aisles 39 35 In addition the lobby was expanded the seats were re upholstered a wheelchair ramp was installed decorations including the chandeliers were restored and the auditorium was repainted The refurbished theater reopened in October 1982 39 40 The Manhattan Theatre Club moved into City Center s basement in 1984 48 49 and the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission designated City Center as a city landmark that year 53 The same year developer Ian Bruce Eichner proposed buying City Center s air rights to obtain additional space for his neighboring CitySpire development 243 244 Eichner planned to pay the CCMD 11 million of which 5 5 million would be passed along to the 55th Street Theater Foundation According to Squadron this would allow the foundation to expand the cramped stage construct new storage areas rebuild the balconies replace the seats and add ticket booths bathrooms and elevators 42 Eichner agreed to make improvements to City Center in exchange for the additional space 243 245 but he had not completed these renovations by 1988 prompting City Center to sue Eichner 246 247 Following a separate controversy over CitySpire s height in 1988 Eichner agreed to build 7 200 square feet 670 m2 of dance studios above a pedestrian arcade at that building s base 245 which the city approved in early 1989 248 249 55th Street Theater Foundation officials contended that the studios were narrow for City Center s dance companies 250 City Center continued to host ballet and dance shows as well as events such as the New York International Ballet Competition 251 City Center s mezzanine was renamed after Robert Joffrey the head of the Joffrey Ballet in 1988 252 In addition City Center s executive director Anthony Micocci was considering producing musicals at the theater by the late 1980s after the stage had been renovated 253 211 Due to continuing disputes over the CitySpire project the developers of that skyscraper agreed to pay the New York City government 2 1 million some of the funding was used to renovate City Center s rehearsal rooms 254 Starting in mid 1990 part of the auditorium was closed for restoration 255 and Altria began sponsoring dance shows at City Center 256 Daykin leadership Edit Squadron appointed Judith Daykin as City Center s executive director in November 1991 after Micocci resigned 257 258 The Joffrey Ballet had stopped regularly performing at City Center after 1991 due to a lack of money 259 By the time Daykin assumed the directorship in 1992 the theater was only hosting 17 weeks of shows per year 260 Within one year of taking over City Center Daykin had paid off the center s 750 000 debt and she had increased fundraising and marketing efforts for the theater 260 Daykin initiated the Encores Great American Musicals in Concert which presented rarely heard musicals starting in 1994 212 261 Daykin perceived Encores as an experimental program that she hoped would attract new audiences 212 Daykin was also credited for turning City Center from a rental hall into an organization that produced its own shows 260 262 Upon City Center s 50th anniversary in 1993 it still largely hosted ballet and dance companies including Joffrey Ballet and the Martha Graham Alvin Ailey Trisha Brown and Paul Taylor dance companies the MTC also presented off Broadway shows there 263 By the late 1990s the center s Encores series had become popular 264 265 According to Daykin the Encores series attracted people who probably hadn t been here in 20 years if they weren t dance fans 265 City Center continued to host visiting dance companies like the ABT which resumed performances there in 1996 266 it also operated a dance education program for middle school students which served 5 000 pupils per year by 1999 267 The auditorium had been renovated but The New York Times reported in 1999 that City Center needed to spend between 8 million and 10 million on repairing the mechanical systems In addition the dome was leaking and needed another 3 million in repairs 17 After Raymond A Lamontagne succeeded Howard Squadron as the chairman of City Center s board in early 1999 Lamontagne announced that he would create an endowment fund for the center 268 Largely because of the changes that Daykin had instituted the theater was hosting shows 40 weeks per year by 2000 At that point City Center had a 10 million annual budget 38 full time staff members and hundreds of part time staff even as its production costs were increasing 260 Because City Center s staff were part of a labor union it cost 200 000 per week to produce a show there compared to 60 000 for a non unionized theater such as the Joyce Theater 256 Consequently The New York Times wrote in 2003 that City Center was no longer affordable for many dance companies 269 though the ABT and the Alvin Ailey and Paul Taylor dance companies continued to perform there 270 The upper balcony was rarely open 271 Shuler leadership and renovation Edit The arch at the far western end of the 55th Street facadeIn 2003 former Joffrey Ballet dancer Arlene Shuler became president and CEO of City Center 270 Shuler quickly renamed the venue New York City Center expanded the board of directors hired development and marketing teams and increased the center s annual budget to 12 million 256 She also launched the Fall for Dance Festival which sold dance tickets for 10 to attract both audiences and dance companies 271 272 City Center hired architecture firm Helpern Architects and contractor Nicholson amp Galloway in 2005 to repair the theater s leaky roof for 2 8 million 26 At the end of that year City Center formed a partnership with the neighboring Carnegie Hall 273 274 The partnership would have allowed the venues to host each other s dance music and theater programs at the time City Center was still mostly a rental venue 275 To accommodate these new programs Shuler had planned to renovate City Center between 2007 and 2008 for 150 million 273 274 The partnership with Carnegie Hall was canceled in early 2007 prompting Shuler to delay City Center s renovation 275 by mid 2008 Shuler planned to begin renovations at the end of the next year 276 Shuler also expanded the Encores program and continued to host dance and off Broadway shows at City Center although the Times wrote in 2009 that Fall for Dance has redefined the theater s identity 277 A 75 million renovation of City Center finally began in March 2010 33 278 Designed by Ennead Architects LLP the work included improved sightlines improved seating and a new canopy as well as restoration of historical elements 33 To accommodate the theater s 2010 2011 theatrical season work contractors renovated the center in two phases during 2010 and 2011 33 The renovation was completed in October 2011 with a ceremony led by mayor Michael Bloomberg 41 279 Just before the theater reopened the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater signed a contract to become City Center s main dance company 280 281 Two dance and ballet companies left City Center in the early 2010s 43 281 The Paul Taylor Dance Company left City Center in 2011 282 and ABT departed the following year citing City Center s small wing space 43 City Center temporarily suspended in person shows in March 2020 due to the COVID 19 pandemic in New York City 283 This affected two of the theater s most popular programs 284 the Encores series was suspended for two years 285 while Fall for Dance was held virtually in 2020 283 After Shuler resigned as City Center s president in 2021 286 287 Michael S Rosenberg was appointed as City Center s new director in September 2022 284 288 Management and governance EditCity Center of Music and Drama Inc Edit The 55th Street theater was originally controlled by the City Center of Music and Drama Inc CCMD 102 103 which the city government established in July 1943 93 The City Center for Music and Drama Inc is the organizational parent of the New York City Ballet and was formerly also the parent company of the New York City Opera 289 which was liquidated in 2013 290 During its first two decades the CCMD was largely synonymous with the 55th Street theater which for the most part was its only location 194 The CCMD temporarily operated the International Theatre on Columbus Circle during the 1948 1949 season 291 292 In January 1965 the CCMD became a member company of Lincoln Center 191 In subsequent years the CCMD used other venues such as the ANTA Theatre 293 Several of the CCMD s constituent companies are no longer affiliated with City Center or no longer exist The New York City Symphony performed there from 1944 to about 1948 138 139 and the New York City Dance Theater only performed at the 55th Street theater during the 1949 1950 season 143 The City Center Art Gallery operated between 1953 and 1961 181 Another former constituent company was the City Center Cinematheque which was proposed in 1970 45 but never formally opened 223 224 55th Street Theater Foundation Edit The City Center 55th Street Theater Foundation took over the 55th Street theater in August 1976 233 subleasing the theater from the CCMD 35 The foundation rents out the main auditorium to various performers and leases the basement space to the Manhattan Theatre Club 50 New York City Center Inc a 501 c 3 nonprofit organization established in 1976 controls the theater As of 2023 update Arlene Shuler is listed as the president and CEO of New York City Center Inc 294 295 For the fiscal year that ended in June 2020 the organization recorded 21 340 158 in revenue and 23 620 235 in expenses for a total net loss of 2 280 077 295 Programming EditUpon the theater s 75th anniversary in 2018 The New York Times characterized City Center as a multidisciplinary space for artists in theater dance and music 296 From the 1940s to the 1960s the City Center s resident companies included the CCMD s opera symphony drama dance and ballet companies 50 Since the late 20th century City Center has hosted a variety of dance performances each season 277 It also hosts events including the Fall for Dance Festival and Encores 50 Dance Edit In 2004 New York City Center introduced the annual Fall for Dance Festival 271 272 The festival attracted many young adults as well as those that had never previously been to City Center or seen dance performances 297 The theater has also hosted events such as the New York City edition of the Vail International Dance Festival which began in 2016 298 The New York City Center Choreography Fellowship established during the 2011 2012 season accepts three fellows per season 299 Fellows receive a stipend are given access to rehearsal space and receive administrative support from City Center officials 299 300 Theatre Edit New York City Center launched its first Encores Great American Musicals in Concert productions in 1994 301 302 In its early years Encores presented musicals such as Du Barry Was a Lady and Pal Joey 264 265 The program earned numerous theatrical awards including from the New York Drama Critics Circle and the Outer Critics Circle 268 In 2000 the American Theatre Wing presented a Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre award to City Center for the Encores series 303 304 The New York Times described Encores in 2001 as a major guardian of America s musical theater heritage 305 Under the tenure of Jack Viertel who directed the series from 2001 to 2019 several Encores productions transferred to Broadway during the 2000s and 2010s including After Midnight The Apple Tree Finian s Rainbow and Gypsy 306 As of 2019 the series is directed by Lear deBessonet 307 Encores Off Center dedicated to hosting rarely heard off Broadway musicals premiered in mid 2013 308 Composer Jeanine Tesori served as the series s first artistic director 309 while Anne Kauffman has directed the series since 2019 310 City Center and Jazz at Lincoln Center launched a partnership during the 2011 2012 season starting with the show Cotton Club Parade 311 312 These shows are presented separately from the Encores series 312 Former programs Edit The New Dramatists Committee and City Center formed the Elinor Morgenthau Players and Playwrights Workshop in April 1951 with funding from the family of former U S Treasury secretary Henry Morgenthau Jr whose wife Elinor had been on the CCMD s board 313 314 The workshop opened in October 1951 and was headquartered on three stories of the City Center building 315 The workshop itself consisted of 50 regular members and 50 alternate members who were divided into three groups Half of the regular members created their own plays and presented them at City Center while the other regular members and the alternates studied plays by established playwrights 316 In celebration of the Metropolitan Museum of Art Centennial he City Center co sponsored Cinematheque at the Metropolitan Museum which showed seventy films dating from the medium s first 75 years from July 29 to September 3 1970 317 The films were selected by Cinematheque Francaise founder and director Henri Langlois from its archive of more than 50 000 films 318 The Met exhibition had led to the creation of the City Center Cinematheque although the CCMD s film division was never formally opened 224 See also EditList of New York City Designated Landmarks in Manhattan from 14th to 59th Streets National Register of Historic Places listings in Manhattan from 14th to 59th StreetsReferences EditNotes Edit Also spelled Verschleisser 75 Citations Edit National Register Information System National Register of Historic Places National Park Service March 13 2009 a b c White Norval amp Willensky Elliot 2000 AIA Guide to New York City 4th ed New York Three Rivers Press p 267 ISBN 978 0 8129 3107 5 a b c White Norval Willensky Elliot Leadon Fran 2010 AIA Guide to New York City 5th ed New York Oxford University Press p 305 ISBN 978 0 19538 386 7 a b c 131 West 55 Street 10019 New York City Department of City Planning Archived from the original on February 28 2023 Retrieved September 8 2020 a b Shriners to Build Fine club on West 55th St Structure Will Cost 750 000 to Build According to Estimate Made by Architect New York Tribune August 5 1922 p 13 ProQuest 576693437 a b New Mecca Temple Home Building in West Fifty Fifth Street Will Cost 750 000 The New York Times August 5 1922 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on February 28 2023 Retrieved February 28 2023 Gray Christopher May 9 1999 Streetscapes 57th Street Between Avenue of the Americas and Seventh Avenue High and Low Notes of a Block With a Musical Bent The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on November 27 2020 Retrieved November 18 2020 Steinway Hall PDF New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission November 13 2001 pp 6 7 Archived PDF from the original on November 9 2020 Retrieved November 12 2020 Federal Writers Project 1939 New York City Guide New York Random House p 232 ISBN 978 1 60354 055 1 Reprinted by Scholarly Press 1976 often referred to as WPA Guide to New York City Society House of the American Society of Civil Engineers PDF New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission December 16 2008 p 2 Archived PDF from the original on August 23 2021 Retrieved August 25 2021 Stable Block Changes Call Sharp Attention Mecca Temple and Five Apart Ments in Fifty fifth Street The New York Times March 25 1923 p RE2 ISSN 0362 4331 ProQuest 103126048 a b Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983 p 4 a b Yale Sells West 55th St Realty to Mecca Temple Property Extending Through Block Will Be Improved With a Mosque New York Tribune December 26 1921 p 16 ProQuest 576510677 a b Yale Sells Land to Masonic Order Mecca Temple of New York to Build 1 500 000 Mosque The Hartford Courant December 28 1921 p 12 ISSN 1047 4153 ProQuest 556999075 a b Mystic Shriners Enlarge for 2 000 000 Home New York Tribune April 21 1922 p 9 ProQuest 576583809 a b Shriners Enlarge Site The New York Times April 21 1922 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on February 28 2023 Retrieved February 28 2023 a b c d e f g h i j Gray Christopher April 11 1999 Streetscapes City Center From Shriners Mecca Temple to Mecca for the Arts The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 a b c d e f g h Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983 p 7 Greene Herbert M September 1926 The Planning of Fraternal Buildings Architectural Forum Vol 45 no 3 p 141 a b c d e f g Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983 p 5 a b c d National Park Service 1984 p 6 a b c American Architect and Architecture 1925 p 173 a b Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983 pp 5 6 a b c Shriners Dedicate Mecca s New Home Nobles From All Parts of the Country Here for Opening of 2 500 000 Mosque The New York Times December 30 1924 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on August 23 2021 Retrieved February 28 2023 a b c d e f g h i j National Park Service 1984 p 2 a b c d e f Collins Glenn March 25 2005 Fixing a Leaky Roof and What a Roof The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 6 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 a b c d e f g h i Pogrebin Robin October 10 2011 Countdown at City Center as Reopening Approaches The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 5 2023 Retrieved March 5 2023 a b c d e f g h i Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983 p 6 a b c d e American Architect and Architecture 1925 p 175 a b c d National Park Service 1984 p 3 Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983 pp 6 7 a b c d Batchelder Roger December 28 1924 5000 Shriners Will March in 5th Avenue Dedication of Mecca Temple Tomorrow Will Bring Nobles From Many States Boston Daily Globe p 29 ProQuest 498083004 a b c d Pogrebin Robin March 16 2010 City Center to Begin 75 Million Renovation The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on December 14 2020 Retrieved February 28 2023 a b Opera and Concert New Mecca Temple N Y In Field for Concerts Variety Vol 78 no 7 April 1 1925 p 23 ProQuest 1505651409 a b c d e f g Turning the City Center Theater Into a First rate Dance Space The New York Times August 29 1982 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 4 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 a b American Architect and Architecture 1925 p 177 American Architect and Architecture 1925 pp 177 180 a b c Lawson Carol March 16 1982 City Center Renovation Set for Summer The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 4 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 a b c d Berman Alexander Janice October 5 1982 A new view at a renovated City Center Newsday p C19 ISSN 2574 5298 ProQuest 993226250 a b Kisselgoff Anna October 5 1982 New City Center a Place to Crown the Dance An Appraisal The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on August 23 2021 Retrieved February 28 2023 a b c Noveck Jocelyn October 30 2011 City Center reopens after 56 million spruce up Standard Speaker pp C2 Archived from the original on March 5 2023 Retrieved March 5 2023 a b City Center Expansion Plan Detailed The New York Times October 30 1984 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on August 23 2021 Retrieved March 4 2023 a b c Catton Pia October 24 2012 American Ballet Theatre to Leave City Center Wall Street Journal ISSN 0099 9660 Archived from the original on October 29 2012 Retrieved March 5 2023 American Architect and Architecture 1925 pp 173 175 a b c Thompson Howard February 14 1970 A City Center Cinema Planned Using Cinematheque s Archives The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 3 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 a b The Dance Umbrella opens Newsday March 31 1981 p 123 Archived from the original on March 4 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 Freedman Samuel G August 8 1984 Cramped Theater Club Seeks City Center Site The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 4 2023 Retrieved March 4 2023 a b Gussow Mel October 24 1984 Manhattan Theater Club Moving to City Center Space The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 4 2023 Retrieved March 4 2023 a b MainStage moves to center s stage Newsday October 21 1984 p 130 Archived from the original on March 4 2023 Retrieved March 4 2023 a b c d e f Myers Eric July 12 2007 A Palace for the People Playbill Archived from the original on March 6 2023 Retrieved March 5 2023 Seating Maps New York City Center Archived from the original on March 4 2023 Retrieved March 4 2023 a b Plan Your Visit Manhattan Theatre Club September 28 2022 Archived from the original on March 4 2023 Retrieved March 4 2023 a b c d e f Botto amp Mitchell 2002 p 302 a b c d Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983 p 3 a b Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983 p 16 Shriners Plan Own Home The New York Times June 15 1911 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on February 28 2023 Retrieved February 28 2023 a b c d Shriners Here Plan 2 000 000 Mosque Mecca Temple Pays 400 000 for Plot in West 55th Street Building to Cost 1 500 000 The New York Times December 25 1921 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on February 28 2023 Retrieved February 28 2023 a b Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983 p 17 Theater in Mecca Temple The Billboard Vol 35 no 33 August 18 1923 p 11 ProQuest 1031716636 American Architect and Architecture 1925 p 178 Shriners at Site of New Mosque Attend Laying of Cornerstone of 2 500 000 Home for Mecca Temple The New York Times October 14 1923 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on February 28 2023 Retrieved February 28 2023 Mecca Temple Mosque Stone Laid by Tompkins New York Tribune October 14 1923 p 15 ProQuest 1237297553 Latest Dealings in Realty Field The New York Times July 15 1924 p 32 ISSN 0362 4331 ProQuest 103363044 Site Occupied by Restaurant In West 34th Street Sold The New York Herald New York Tribune July 16 1924 p 22 ProQuest 1112741808 3 000 Shriners Help Dedicate Mecca Mosque 2 000 000 Arabic Temple in West 55th St Scene of Impressive Rites by Nobles of Masonic Order Parade Before Services Mayor of Philadelphia Murray Hulbert and Justice Tompkin Speak The New York Herald New York Tribune December 30 1924 p 8 ProQuest 1113085593 a b Mecca Temple Mosque Opened at Exposition Shriners New Auditorium Said To Be Largest in City The New York Herald New York Tribune May 19 1925 p 15 ProQuest 1113071210 Vaudeville Shriners Style Show Clothes and Things Variety Vol 79 no 1 May 20 1925 p 31 ProQuest 1505686880 Sousa Opens New Mecca Temple Hall Celebrates Third of a Century of His Band With Concert in Vast Auditorium The New York Times October 12 1925 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on February 28 2023 Retrieved February 28 2023 Sousa Is Greeted With Tributes and Gifts at Concert Noted Bandmaster Opens Mecca Temple Auditorium in His Only Appearance in Manhattan This Season New York Herald Tribune October 12 1925 p 10 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1112989740 Lowers High Cost of Concert Music New York Symphony Makes Cuts of 10 and 20 Per Cent in Next Season s Series The New York Times April 2 1925 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on February 28 2023 Retrieved February 28 2023 Postal Employees Thank Congress for Pay Raise The New York Herald New York Tribune April 5 1925 p 14 ProQuest 1112918434 Honor Pulaski Tomorrow Mayor s Proclamation Requests Observance for 1776 Hero The New York Times October 10 1929 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on February 28 2023 Retrieved February 28 2023 Quits Temporary Home Rodeph Sholom Congregation Holds Last Mecca Temple Service The New York Times September 30 1929 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on February 28 2023 Retrieved February 28 2023 New Group Plans Popular Opera Fides Company Includes 57 Musicians From Orchestra of the Metropolitan The New York Times September 11 1933 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 a b Leases in Mecca Temple Verschleisser to Operate Ballroom Carpet Concern Moving The New York Times April 5 1934 p 40 ISSN 0362 4331 ProQuest 101049399 Children Guests at a WPA Circus 4 000 Afflicted Youngsters Thrilled at 3 Hour Show in Mecca Temple The New York Times December 24 1936 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 Slain Archbishop Mourned by 3 000 Armenian Protest Meeting in Mecca Temple Guarded by Police and Army of Ushers The New York Times January 29 1934 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 Greeks Here Urged to Back Republic Papanastasiou Doubts That Plebiscite on Monarchy Will Be Held This Fall The New York Times September 8 1935 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 National Park Service 1984 p 7 a b Bracker Milton December 12 1953 City Center Marks Its 10th Birthday Ferrer Co Stars With Wagner and Morris at Celebration Complete With Big Cake The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 Opera at Mecca Temple Building to Be Converted by Fall Art Center at Shrine Temple The New York Times August 13 1941 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 a b Remodeling Begun On Mecca Temple The Christian Science Monitor August 16 1941 p 9 ProQuest 513630113 a b Downes Olin November 5 1941 Stokowski Opens Symphonic Series NBC Orchestra Is Heard in the First of Four Programs at Cosmopolitan Opera House The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 N s June 20 1942 The Gypsy Baron is Presented Here Central European Musical and Theatrical Leaders Hear the Strauss Operetta The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 Straus Noel September 26 1942 Beggar Student is Presented Here Karl Milloecker s Three Act Operetta Is Produced at the Cosmopolitan Opera House The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 Straus Noel May 18 1942 Concert is Given for War Stamps Third of Series Under Mayor and the City WPA Aided by Musicians Group Held The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 a b Mecca Temple Bid In By the City on Lien The New York Times September 2 1942 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 Mecca Temple Property Is Foreclosed by City New York Herald Tribune September 2 1942 p 25 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1320076853 Mecca Temple Offered For Rent by the City New York Herald Tribune October 5 1942 p 23 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1284467995 Plan Music Center at Mecca Temple Mayor and Spokesmen for the Arts Discuss Proposal Originated by Morris The New York Times March 6 1943 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 Mayor Pianning Music Center at Mecca Temple Will Name Committees to Study Plans to Create Municipal Arts Temple New York Herald Tribune March 6 1943 p 6A ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1267871292 Morton Baum Lawyer Is Dead A Founder of City Center in 43 Called Financial Production and Political Brain of Artistic Institution The New York Times February 8 1968 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 a b Mayor Reveals Plans to Open Mecca Temple as a Music Center Announces 40 Week Season Will Start This Fall With Concert Opera Festival and Then Plays Low Admission Prices To Be the Rule New York Herald Tribune July 22 1943 p 1 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1267875722 Center to Open Dec 11 Philharmonic to Play at Formal Dedication of City Project The New York Times November 11 1943 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 a b Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983 p 8 a b c Zinsser William K February 21 1950 Repertory Theater for New York Future of Fine Companies of Music Ballet and Drama Wait on City s Decision New York Herald Tribune p 18 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1326037218 City Will Remodel Mecca Auditorium Architect Drawing Plans to Renovate New Civic Center of Music and Drama The New York Times July 23 1943 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on February 28 2023 Retrieved February 28 2023 Music Center May Be Ready By October 1 Mecca Temple Renovation to Begin in Two Weeks Mayor Heads Corporation New York Herald Tribune July 23 1943 p 9 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1267876483 To Alter Mecca Temple City Files Plans to Change New Music Center The New York Times August 4 1943 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on February 28 2023 Retrieved February 28 2023 65 000 Voted To Renovate Mecca Temple Board of Estimate Approves Fund 11 to 5 to Prepare Music and Drama Center New York Herald Tribune August 13 1943 p 8 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1322118418 Hart Says Inquiry Will Cost Nothing Investigation of La Guardia Regime Will Save Big Sum for City He Asserts The New York Times August 13 1943 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on February 28 2023 Retrieved February 28 2023 a b Music Center Gets a Revocable Permit Voted by Board of Estimate for New City Auditorium The New York Times September 24 1943 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on February 28 2023 Retrieved February 28 2023 a b Mecca Temple Permit Granted to City Center 40 Week Program of Drama Music and Opera Planned New York Herald Tribune September 24 1943 p 16 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1269853372 Priorities Upset Renovation of Mecca Temple But Music Drama Center May Open in November After Some Redecoration New York Herald Tribune September 23 1943 p 19 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1268029308 Jersey Man Heads City Music Center Naming of Harry Friedgut to Direct Cultural Project Announced by Mayor The New York Times September 13 1943 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 Friedgut Named Director Of New City Music Center Entertainments in Mecea Temple Slart About Nov 1 New York Herald Tribune September 13 1943 p 8 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1267877310 a b City Center Director is Reported Quitting Said to Have Had Row With the Management Over Policy The New York Times July 5 1944 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 Mecca Temple Renamed New York City Center Corporation Takes Over to Provide Entertainment New York Herald Tribune October 20 1943 p 17 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1319897239 City Theatre Center Changes Its Name New York Amsterdam News November 20 1943 p 21 ProQuest 226101923 a b Mayor Hails City Center With Profit of 844 77 Says Experimental Stage Is Over for People s Theater New York Herald Tribune May 24 1944 p 16 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1284479840 City is Embarked on Music Career Philharmonic Opens Program Before Capacity Throng in Old Mecca Temple The New York Times December 12 1943 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on February 28 2023 Retrieved February 28 2023 First Program At City Center Heard by 2 800 Mayor Dedicates Project After Audience Sings Happy Birthday to You New York Herald Tribune December 12 1943 p 22 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1284473671 a b Botto amp Mitchell 2002 p 299 Robertson Nan May 19 1957 Broadway s Dauntless Dalrymple Dauntless Dalrymple of the City Center Born in New Jersey Meeting in Berlin The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 Spiegel Irving December 12 1943 City Center Opens And Mr Golden Has a Few Words to Say About the New Venture The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on February 28 2023 Retrieved February 28 2023 Botto amp Mitchell 2002 pp 299 302 Kozinn Allan October 31 2001 Laszlo Halasz First Director Of City Opera Is Dead at 96 The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on January 26 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 Downes Olin March 7 1944 Stokowski Directs the City Symphony Orchestra Makes Its Bow in Brilliant Fashion Under Inspired Leadership The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 2 Film Concerns Get Bid to Aid N Y City Center Their Sponsorship Morris Says Would Enable Us to Keep Chins Above Water New York Herald Tribune March 24 1944 p 13 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1269909472 Nichols Lewis January 16 1944 The City Center New York s Own Civic Theatre Has Had A Successful Beginning The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 City Center Reports 844 Profit During First Year of Its Operation Mayor Says Venture Into Show Business No Longer an Experiment Coy on Future Has Ambitious Plans The New York Times May 24 1944 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 City Center Plans Own Ballet And Play Companies Next Year New York Herald Tribune February 23 1944 p 15A ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1282845179 City Music Center Has 35 908 Deficit Year s Operation Shows Loss Morris Reports for Catering to Love of Melody The New York Times May 24 1945 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 Classies Cost 35 908 Deficit At City Center Musical Programs Showed Only Losses in Second Year Billing Says Morris New York Herald Tribune May 24 1945 p 17A ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1291102187 Martin John September 10 1944 The Dance Ballet Russe New Balanchine Stravinsky Work for Opening of City Center Season The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983 pp 8 9 a b Shepard Richard F December 6 1963 Special Program Monday Marks 20th Year of City Center Shows Review for a Career Rent Is Only 1 The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 6 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 Plan Up to Extend City Center s Life Move Apparently Intended to Bar Interference by the Next Administration The New York Times June 14 1945 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 Mayor Moves To Extend Life Of City Center Permit Expires on July 31 Estimate Board Asked to Grant Five Year Lease New York Herald Tribune June 14 1945 p 13 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1291110258 Renews Building Lease City Center of Music and Drama Only Bidder for Space The New York Times July 26 1945 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 New City Center Lease Music and Drama Organization Rents Proerty for 5 Years New York Herald Tribune July 26 1945 p 36 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1291112806 McCord Bert July 10 1945 News of the Theater City Center Outlines Plans New York Herald Tribune p 6 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1337120789 a b c City Center Gains as a Show Place Report by Newbold Morris on Operations Since 1943 Tells of Growth in Audiences The New York Times May 21 1947 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 City Center Now Airconditioned Henry V Continues There New Leader Vol 29 no 31 August 3 1946 p 12 ProQuest 1308955524 City Center Sets 750 888 Record For Attendance Report for Year Lists 462 Performances Million in Income No Deficit New York Herald Tribune May 21 1947 p 21 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1313567424 Bernstein Agrees to Retain City Post Withdraws Resignation as Head of Symphony Morris Says Center Has 16 000 Profit The New York Times May 20 1948 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 City Center Drew 575 637 in Season Attendance at All Time High With Gross Near 750 000 Operations Almost Even The New York Times May 20 1949 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 a b c Shepard Richard F January 11 1965 City Centers Sees Return of Plays Dramas Absent Since 57 Possible With New Space The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 6 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 a b Eyer Ron November 13 1968 City Opera is a Shining Survivor Newsday p 143 Archived from the original on March 3 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 Martin John June 27 1948 The Dance City Ballet The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 Martin John November 20 1949 The Dance Modern Unit for City Center The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 City Dance Theater Sets Center Debut New Organization Features Modern Repertory New York Herald Tribune November 17 1949 p 24 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1326906043 a b Walter Terry September 23 1951 The Dance World New York City Dance Theatre Alive Dormant or Renascent New York Herald Tribune p D2 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1291350634 City Center Lost 3 517 in Season This Was Better Than Previous Year Morris Reports Gross at 1 125 555 The New York Times May 19 1950 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 Zolotow Sam September 9 1949 Union Makes Bid for City Center Musicians Local 802 Submits 850 000 Offer for Cultural House Action Pending The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 Atkinson Brooks October 2 1949 Uncertain Future The City Center Lacks An Official Guarantee The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 Dash Thomas R February 7 1950 Theatres Sees Lease Holdup on City Center Endangering Projects Women s Wear Daily Vol 80 no 26 p 51 ProQuest 1564884122 News of the Theater Wants City Center Lease New York Herald Tribune February 7 1950 p 18 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1327398251 Mecca Temple Lease Renewed By City Center Board of Estiniute Acts as Mayor Gives Assurance of Continued Cultural Aid New York Herald Tribune February 24 1950 p 1 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1326038727 City Center s Lease Extended Five Years The New York Times February 24 1950 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 City Center Shows Deficit of 72 338 Operating Loss for Last Year 69 838 More Than 1949 50 Mayor s Wife on Board The New York Times May 17 1951 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 Funke Lewis July 29 1951 News and Gossip Gathered on the Rialto City Center Is Considering Limiting Its Drama Season to Winter Series The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 Genauer Emily March 19 1952 City Center Will Build Gallery To Exhibit and Sell Fine Arts To Convert Fire Escape Passage Off Lobby Room to Run All Year Depend on Gifts at Start New York Herald Tribune p 1 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1322198892 City Center to Add Art Shows in Fall New Gallery to Present and Help to Sell Contemporary Paintings and Sculptures The New York Times June 23 1952 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 Lincoln Kirstein Authority on the Dance Elected Managing Director of City Center The New York Times October 2 1952 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 City Center Group Asks 1 Lease Law Cites Money Hardship State Bill Would Permit Charge of Minimum Yearly Rent The New York Times February 16 1953 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 McCord Bert February 16 1953 1 Yearly Rent for City Center Would Be Allowed by Albany Bill New York Herald Tribune p 9 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1322477232 a b Crowell Paul February 11 1955 City Center Gets 1 a Year Lease And Possible Forgiveness of Debt The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 City Center Appeals for Fund of 200 000 The New York Times April 14 1953 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 200 000 Rockefeller Grant for City Center New York Herald Tribune July 3 1953 p 8 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1322496715 City Center Gets Grant of 200 000 Rockefeller Foundation Gives 3 Year Aid for New Opera and Ballet Productions The New York Times July 3 1953 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 City Center Adds an Art Gallery First Exhibition of Paintings and Prints on Sept 29 New Shows Each Month The New York Times September 11 1953 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 City Center Art Gallery to Open New York Herald Tribune September 11 1953 p 12 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1323103115 a b 86 886 Surplus for City Center Morris Cites Grants Gifts and Successful Shows for Sound Status The New York Times May 23 1958 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 a b Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983 p 9 How to Have Roof Fixed Women s Wear Daily Vol 88 no 13 January 20 1954 p 80 ProQuest 1564958560 City Center Lost 227 135 in Year Morris Reports on Operations in 1953 54 Attendance for Season Up 116 246 The New York Times May 21 1954 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 Friends Organized to Aid City Center The New York Times January 21 1954 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 a b Ross Don February 8 1959 You Too Can Be in Show Biz If You Are a City Center Friend New York Herald Tribune p D1 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1323294533 Zolotow Sam May 5 1954 City Light Opera Will Bow Tonight Company Opens With Show Boat Fledermaus and Carousel Are Listed The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 6 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 Taubman Howard January 28 1955 City Center Director Quits in Policy Fight The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 Zolotow Sam May 24 1956 City Center Lists Deficit of 10 254 Year s Loss of 220 000 Was Made Up by Contributions Grants and Rental Waiver The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 City Opera Drops 57 Spring Season 160 000 Deficit Is a Factor in Decision Other Center Activities to Continue The New York Times November 28 1956 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 City Center Bars Plans for Opera Board Blocks Proposals by Kirstein to Operate Unit as a Comique Troupe The New York Times December 11 1956 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 Center Discloses Season s Surplus 281 000 in Gifts Last Year and Musical Hits Put City Playhouse in the Black The New York Times May 24 1957 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 City Center In Black Morris Says Reports Fiscal Crisis Is Ended New York Herald Tribune May 24 1957 p A1 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1336309707 City Center Lists Deficit of 16 987 Loss for 1958 59 Season Reported New Members Elected to Board The New York Times May 22 1959 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 City Center Eyes Rise in 3 95 Top Morris Sees Price Going Up if Costs Keep Increasing Deficit Is 29 269 The New York Times June 7 1960 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 Peter D Franklin July 1 1959 City Center Is Negotiating to Move All Operations Into Lincoln Center New York Herald Tribune p 1 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1327322607 Parmenter Ross July 1 1959 Mayor Forecasts City Center Move Tells Lions It Will Shift to Lincoln Center but Office Denies Issue Is Settled The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 a b Knox Sanka May 23 1961 City Center is Set to Close Gallery Nonprofit Art Section Going Under for Lack of Funds The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 City Center s Loss is 12 401 for Year The New York Times May 25 1962 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 Rich Alan June 12 1963 City Center Cuts Year s Deficit And Donors Promptly Erase It The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 Ballet is Moving to Lincoln Center City Troupe Keeping Prices Low at State Theater The New York Times April 1 1963 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 Legitimate N Y C Ballet Submerging Own Identity in Move To the Lincoln Center Variety Vol 230 no 6 April 3 1963 p 104 ProQuest 1032431184 City Center Ends Year in the Black Fiscal Period First to Close With Profit Since 1948 The New York Times May 28 1964 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on February 28 2023 Retrieved February 28 2023 Move is Weighed for City Center State Theater Would House Opera Ballet and Drama The New York Times September 21 1964 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 6 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 Centers Collide Control of New York State Theater Disputed by Culture Combines The New York Times October 11 1964 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 a b Landry Robert J October 7 1964 Legitimate 55th St Poor Man s Culture Groups Resist Swallowing by Lincoln Center Variety Vol 236 no 7 pp 63 68 ProQuest 1014829862 City Center to Run Lincoln Center Theater Newsday January 11 1965 p 3C ISSN 2574 5298 ProQuest 914438621 a b Esterow Milton January 11 1965 City Center Joins Lincoln Center To Become Constituent and Get State Theater Lease for Ballet and Opera The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 Shepard Richard F January 3 1966 City Center Will Take Over State Theater Today Both Houses Fully Booked for 1966 Baum Reveals 5 50 Top Price Set The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 3 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 Calta Louis May 28 1966 City Center s Grateful Friends Offset 1965 66 Operating Loss The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 3 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 a b c Soper Susan December 4 1977 At City Center Newsday pp 95 115 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 Calta Louis April 9 1966 Morton Baum Is Selected to Head City Center Tax Lawyer Is the Successor of Newbold Morris A Director of Lincoln Center He Also Held Civic Posts The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 Winship Frederick M September 8 1966 Joffrey Ballet Opens at New York City Center Los Angeles Times p D14 ISSN 0458 3035 ProQuest 155494029 City Center Adds Joffrey Ballet Troupe Set to Occupy New Home in Fall Season The New York Times June 3 1966 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 3 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 Funke Lewis July 3 1966 The Rialto Drama Returns to City Center Drama In Center The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 3 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 a b Shepard Richard F January 18 1967 City Center Gets a Gift From City 500 000 to Go to Revamp Theater on 55th Street The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on February 28 2023 Retrieved February 28 2023 Henahan Donal February 15 1968 City Center Seeks a Strong Leader Interim Panel to Rule Until Baum Successor Is Named The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 3 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 City Center Board Confirms Naming of Norman Singer The New York Times May 24 1968 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 3 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 Calta Louis November 7 1968 Richard Clurman Is Named City Center Chairman The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 New Chairman Daily News November 7 1968 p 90 Archived from the original on March 3 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 Taubman Howard March 28 1969 City Center Unveils 8th Ave Project The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on July 3 2022 Retrieved March 3 2023 Taubman Howard January 19 1971 City Center to Remodel the Beaumont The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 8 2022 Retrieved March 8 2022 Beaufort John October 9 1971 Belated curtain call for New York s Beaumont Skyscraper proposed Position sketched Support wells up The Christian Science Monitor p 2 ProQuest 511243872 Ranzal Edward October 8 1971 Beaumont Backers Get a New Chance The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 3 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 Taubman Howard December 3 1971 City Center Formally Withdraws Its Beaumont Plan The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 8 2022 Retrieved March 8 2022 Wallach Allan January 10 1972 City Center looks up despite faded dream Newsday p 11A ISSN 2574 5298 ProQuest 917505382 a b Kisselgoff Anna March 15 1972 City Center Is Considering Creation of a Drama Unit The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 3 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 a b Hummler Richard April 22 1987 Legitimate City Center Mulling Musicals Record Label Is Funding Study Variety Vol 326 no 13 pp 83 90 ProQuest 1438475499 a b c O Toole Lawrence February 6 1994 Theater Musicals From Way Back When for Now The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 4 2023 Retrieved March 4 2023 Kisselgoff Anna August 4 1972 Ailey Joins City Center The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 3 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 City Center Adds New Group Formed by 18 at Juilliard The New York Times August 24 1972 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 3 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 a b Kiess Peter October 4 1972 City Center Reports A 1 3 Million Deficit The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 3 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 Gussow Mel March 6 1973 City Center s Financial Ills Worsen The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 3 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 Gussow Mel March 19 1973 Ford Fund Lends City Center a Million The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 3 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 Fowler Glenn November 16 1973 Extension of Fill in Queens Barred The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 3 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 a b Legitimate Re Structuring N Y City Center Variety Vol 279 no 3 May 28 1975 p 91 ProQuest 1032475170 a b c d Micklin Bob September 8 1974 Grantsmanship Ultimately Depressing Work Newsday pp 73 74 Archived from the original on March 3 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 Cinematheque Gets Queensboro Site The New York Times November 2 1973 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 5 2023 Retrieved March 5 2023 Oster Jerry November 26 1973 City Provides Fine Site for Film History Daily News p 56 Archived from the original on March 5 2023 Retrieved March 5 2023 a b Prial Frank J May 16 1987 Construction Date is Set at Stalled Bridgemarket The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 5 2023 Retrieved March 5 2023 a b c Film festival from Paris Newsday January 16 1977 p 107 Archived from the original on March 5 2023 Retrieved March 5 2023 Tomasson Robert E March 10 1974 City Center Site May Be Cleared The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 Desiderio Elio March 11 1974 Center Committed to a Dance Theater The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 Shepard Richard F July 2 1974 Norman Singer Leaving As City Center Director The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 3 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 Shepard Richard F February 5 1975 City Center Will Keep 55th St Theater The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on February 28 2023 Retrieved February 28 2023 Shepard Richard F May 21 1975 City Center Undertakes a Reorganization The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 a b Glueck Grace July 26 1975 John S Samuels 3d to Head City Center The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 a b c Kisselgoff Anna December 4 1983 Dance View City Center s Populist Past to Be Fondly Remembered The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 4 2023 Retrieved March 4 2023 Kisselgoff Anna April 6 1976 4 Ballets Seek to Manage City Center The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 a b Kisselgoff Anna April 9 1976 City Center to Turn 55th St Theater Over to Dancers The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on February 28 2023 Retrieved February 28 2023 Kisselgoff Anna June 23 1976 Discord Threatens Plan For 55th Street Theater The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 2 2023 Retrieved March 2 2023 Kisselgoff Anna August 21 1976 Dance Troupes to Run 55th St Theater The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on February 28 2023 Retrieved February 28 2023 a b Rockwell John July 16 1981 Alton Marshall Unopposed Elected Head of City Center Board The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 4 2023 Retrieved March 3 2023 a b c Leogrande Ernest September 11 1980 A grande dame gets her dignity renewed Daily News p 280 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 Purnick Joyce June 10 1981 New York Area Given Reprieve by Congress On 15 Million in Aid Metropolitan Area Gets Reprieve On 15 Million in Federal Grants Massive Goodies Program The New York Times p A1 ISSN 0362 4331 ProQuest 121610791 Rockwell John July 11 1981 Personal Style Role of Lincoln Center Puzzling Bitterness Lamented The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on February 28 2023 Retrieved February 28 2023 Rockwell John July 15 1981 John Samuels Resigns as Head of City Center The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 1 2023 Retrieved March 1 2023 Bennetts Leslie September 20 1983 City Center Picks Chairman The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 4 2023 Retrieved March 4 2023 Oppenheimer gets City Center post Newsday September 21 1983 p B56 ISSN 2574 5298 ProQuest 993625344 a b Daniels Lee A May 3 1984 72 story Tower Proposed Next to the City Center The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on August 23 2021 Retrieved August 23 2021 City Center Rumor Center New York Daily News July 12 1984 p 277 Archived from the original on August 23 2021 Retrieved August 23 2021 via newspapers com a b Stern Fishman amp Tilove 2006 p 633 Saunders D J December 9 1988 City Center loses high rise round New York Daily News p 69 Archived from the original on August 23 2021 Retrieved August 23 2021 via newspapers com Tyre Peg Walls Jeannette October 24 1988 Intelligencer City Center Claim May Mire Cityspire New York Vol 21 no 42 New York Media LLC p 17 ISSN 0028 7369 Archived from the original on August 24 2021 Retrieved August 25 2021 Moss Michael March 31 1989 Estimate Board OKs CitySpire Deal in Close Vote Newsday p 9 Archived from the original on August 23 2021 Retrieved August 23 2021 via newspapers com Lubasch Arnold H March 31 1989 Board of Estimate Approves New Staten Island Jail The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on August 24 2021 Retrieved August 24 2021 Dunlap David W November 9 1988 Cityspire To Dismantle Part of Tower The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on August 23 2021 Retrieved March 4 2023 Dunning Jennifer June 25 1987 Ballet World Contest Begins at City Center The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 4 2023 Retrieved March 4 2023 City Center Mezzanine To Be Named for Joffrey The New York Times November 24 1988 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 4 2023 Retrieved March 4 2023 Honan William H July 4 1988 In New York the Cultural Season Is Beginning to Have No Seasons The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 4 2023 Retrieved March 4 2023 Dunlap David W August 13 1997 Midtown Midblock Walkway Nears Completion The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on August 24 2021 Retrieved March 3 2023 Seats Added for Tharp The New York Times February 6 1992 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 4 2023 Retrieved March 4 2023 a b c Kreinin Souccar Miriam September 27 2004 Reviving location as hub barre none has facility on toes Crain s New York Business Vol 20 no 39 p 4 ProQuest 219129771 City Center Names Its New Administrator The New York Times November 14 1991 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 4 2023 Retrieved March 4 2023 Succeeds Anthony Micocci Daykin Named City Center Head Newsday November 14 1991 p 81 ISSN 2574 5298 ProQuest 278441402 Kisselgoff Anna December 20 1992 Dance View Can the Joffrey Ever Go Home Again The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 4 2023 Retrieved March 4 2023 a b c d Collins Glenn November 21 2000 Public Lives City Center s Leader and Other Rare Finds The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 5 2023 Retrieved March 5 2023 Hersh Amy September 3 1993 City Center to Present Musicals In Concert Series Back Stage Vol 34 no 36 pp 3 11 ProQuest 962766921 Isherwood Charles June 12 2002 Daykin determines she ll retire from City Center Variety Archived from the original on November 14 2022 Retrieved November 18 2022 Ickes Bob May 10 1993 Hot Center New York Magazine New York Media LLC ISSN 0028 7369 Archived from the original on March 8 2023 Retrieved March 4 2023 a b Span Paula March 16 1997 Encores The Theater s Live Archive New York Series Revives Musicals in Original Form The Washington Post p G01 ISSN 0190 8286 ProQuest 408319779 a b c Stevenson William February 16 1996 Encores City Center Revives A Popular Tradition Back Stage Vol 37 no 7 p 37 ProQuest 962968541 Dunning Jennifer December 3 1996 For Ballet Theater New Homes at Arts Center in Newark and at City Center The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 5 2023 Retrieved March 5 2023 Liston Heather February 1999 New York s City Center A Model for Outreach Dance Teacher Vol 21 no 2 pp 54 56 ProQuest 2085103 a b Shattuck Kathryn February 5 1999 City Center Plans to Try to Catch Up With the Joneses The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 5 2023 Retrieved March 5 2023 Dunning Jennifer December 3 2003 Wanted A Good Home For a Space Starved Art The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 5 2023 Retrieved March 5 2023 a b McKinley Jesse February 19 2003 A Former Dancer Is Picked to Lead City Center The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 4 2023 Retrieved March 4 2023 a b c Dunning Jennifer September 21 2004 City Center Is Offering a Smorgasbord of Dance The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 5 2023 Retrieved March 5 2023 a b Reiter Susan September 26 2004 Rich offerings cheap tix Newsday pp 113 114 Archived from the original on March 5 2023 Retrieved March 5 2023 a b Dobnik Verena December 3 2005 Carnegie Hall City Center forge artistic partnership The Journal News p 20 Archived from the original on March 5 2023 Retrieved March 5 2023 a b Wakin Daniel J December 3 2005 Two Halls Will Share Theaters and Funds The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 5 2023 Retrieved March 5 2023 a b Wakin Daniel J September 1 2007 As Merger With Carnegie Crumbles City Center Will Delay Its Renovation The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 5 2023 Retrieved March 5 2023 Wakin Daniel J July 9 2008 City Center Renovation Leaves Schedulers Uncertain The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 5 2023 Retrieved March 5 2023 a b Sulcas Roslyn August 28 2009 Building a Profile for City Center Dance Mecca The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 5 2023 Retrieved March 5 2023 Dennhardt Jeff March 17 2010 City Center Commits 75 Million to Renovation BroadwayWorld com Archived from the original on March 5 2023 Retrieved March 5 2023 Oestreich James R October 26 2011 With Bloomberg Leading the Band City Center Reopens The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on March 5 2023 Retrieved March 5 2023 Pogrebin Robin September 26 2011 Alvin Ailey Signs Longterm Deal With City Center ArtsBeat Archived from the original on March 5 2023 Retrieved March 5 2023 span, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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