Plac1402_01-80

New Amsterdam Theatre,
New Victory Theater
The restoration of two historic theaters
not only jump-starts Times Square’s
recent revival but also enables theater-
goers to revel in the area’s complex
architectural history.
Top: New Amsterdam Theatre
Above: The new theatres,
signage and interior detail
which face each other across
reflect different eras of renova-
the street, were among the
tion. Left photo Chris Lovi,
first signs of change along
right photo by Whitney Cox,
redeveloping 42nd Street.
Disney Enterprises, Inc.
Photo Elliott Kaufman
P L A C E S 1 4 : 2
Theater Row
Theatre Row, section, showing
weaving of multiple-theatre
A careful collaboration between
access lobby, upper-level
theater companies, theater operators
theatre, and apartments into
a complex site.
and a residential developer extends
Courtesy Hardy Holzman
Times Square’s renewal westward and
Pfeiffer
strengthens its residential community.
After more than a decade of false starts, the chased much of the blockfront and created a the- Times Square redevelopment burst to life with ater laboratory for small companies.
the opening of the New Victory Theatre in 1995 The current project will include the construc- and the New Amsterdam Theater in 1997.
tion of six new theaters, varying in size from 83 to Hardy’s “interpretive restorations” became 499 seats, rehearsal studios and support spaces, all touchstones for public discourse about Times topped by a forty-story residential building, The- Square’s nature, conversations that until then ater Tower. Thus the block will continue to pro- had been colored by distant memories, nostalgia, vide an incubator for various sizes of productions, yet in fresher, more supportive facilities, and adds Before the completion of these theaters, the to the life of the theater district by increasing the most visible manifestation of change at Times Square was the cacophony of signage erected under special Times Square zoning rules and an demonstrates the constellation of public, civic and interim redevelopment plan for 42nd Street private resources that must align to inspire urban between Seventh and Eighth Avenues—urban regeneration, the Theater Row and Theater design initiatives that extrapolated, perhaps Tower project is emblematic of the symbiotic exaggerated, one of the brashest aspects of the relationship between the arts and urban develop- ment. Theater has colonized Times Square over The restorations, instead, were true to the evo- and over again; in recent years, the income from lutionary nature of Times Square, not restoring large real-estate projects has been increasingly the theaters to any one point in time, not elevat- necessary to underwrite spaces that afford artists ing them to mythical status, but embracing the full creative liberty. Not surprisingly, it is archi- multiple layers of history as evidenced in various tecture that steps into the bargain.
In the few years since then, nearly every prop- erty in the Times Square redevelopment area hasbeen redeveloped, and attention is turning to thesurrounding area. Theater Row, a vibrant strip oftiny theaters two blocks west of Times Square,dates back more than twenty-five years, whensmall theater companies started leasing space inthe block. A non-profit group subsequently pur- P L A C E S 1 4 : 2
P L A C E M A R K A W A R D : H U G H H A R D Y

Source: http://designobserver.net/media/pdf/New_Amsterdam__778.pdf